Scissors and Sticky Tape

Spin, Twirl, Dance!

2011-04-30T22:07:00.000-06:00

You could say that creativity has been somewhat lacking in our house lately. We had been expecting to be moving until red tape put a rather abrupt hold on our plans, and the past few months of waiting around have not been especially inspirational! Creativity has not been happening.

And then we spotted this t shirt in the clearance rack.

And I remembered the sewing machine tucked away in storage, that I had bought to help keep myself entertained after we do move. And I realised that this t shirt very clearly wanted to be made into a dress!

A quick google search revealed there were lots of instructions online for making t shirt dresses. I decided to base my one on these instructions by Mormon Mommy Wars. Nice and straight forward, and quick too. Of course, me being me, I then proceeded to change every step - shorten the t shirt, make the skirt fuller, add a frill, add some lace.... Needless to say I made one dress in two hours, rather than six in two hours like it said in the instructions! But the end result was worth it...

a pretty, inexpensive dress (with none of the fuss of having to put in sleeves or finish necklines!)

and a very happy girl (giving the dress the 'spin twirl dance' test).

Best of all - some creativity at last!

Sketch Challenge Pony Party, with sparkle.

2011-02-21T16:53:00.000-07:00

I have been meaning to join in the fun over at 'Just Add Ink' for quite a while now, but just never quite got myself organised in time. Until now that is. This week they have a great sketch for inspiration and it worked perfectly for a birthday card for Bridie's friend. Here is the sketch they had:

And here is what I came up with:

(The card is actually straight - it is my photo that is wonky!) I flipped the layout over so that the unicorn (from the Pony Party stamp set) would be looking towards the greeting. A splash of colour using markers, and some glitter to add to the sparkle and magic soon gave us a perfect little girl's birthday card.

'This is Your Story' layout

2011-02-18T22:02:00.000-07:00

I am pretty sure I could count on one hand the number of scrapbooking projects I completed last year. I think my immediate desire to document the adventures and achievements in our lives was taken care of with blogging, and scrapbooking fell by the wayside. I do enjoy scrapbooking though, and so this year I am hoping to get back into it. At the very least I am hoping that I will need two hands to count the projects at the end of the year!

So here is my first scrapbooking project - a 12 x 12 layout. It doesn't have any photos, but was the perfect project to allow me to play with some frills and fuss, and still keep the straight lines and order that I really like.

I used several different shades of pink ink to first sponge the nine squares that were the base of the layout, and then it was just a case of adding on the pretty bits - flowers, hearts and butterflies, and a 'B' for Bridie. I used an assortment of punches and big shot dies, as well as embossing folders to add texture to some of the elements. Some half pearls, paper daisies (one sponged pink) and some scraps of the Newsprint DSP were added to the mix too.

Other ingredients (all from SU):

Card/ink: Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose

Stamps: Rough Type, Notes and Details

Punches: Full Heart Extra Large, Heart to Heart Extra Large, Small Heart, Scallop Trim Border

Dies (used with Big Shot): Beautiful Butterflies, Timeless Type Junior Alphabet, Lots of Tags, Beautiful Wings Embosslit, Simple Flower Embosslit

Embossing Folders (used with Big Shot): Perfect Polka Dots, Petals-a-Plenty

This layout is for the front of Bridie's album (hence the 'this is your story...') but I think it would be perfect as an artwork for her room too, so version 2 is on the list of things to do, as is a boy version of the scrapbook layout. That's almost one handful of projects!

A Number Birthday Card

2011-02-13T11:46:00.000-07:00

This card was inspired by a sketch (126) over at the Clean and Simple Stamping Blog. When it comes to birthday cards for children you cannot go wrong with a big old number on the front. They are so proud of their newer, older status (so at what point does that change I wonder?!) I find it particularly good for boys too, who don't necessarily appreciate a bunch of fuss and frill.

I started by stamping up some white card using the Circle Circus stamp set, and three different ink colours (Crumb Cake, Cajun Craze and Marina Mist) to make my own, one of a kind, 'patterned paper'. Then after all of that, I only ended up using a couple of little strips of it on the front of the card, and another on the inside. The dies used for this card were Timeless Type Junior Alphabet, and Lots of Tags. The sentiment is from my favourite, and most used (but sadly now retired) birthday set - A Little Birthday Cheer.

Lots of Monster Valentines

2011-02-11T11:32:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again - Valentine production line! I did think this year I might take the easy way out and just let the kids choose valentines from the shop, but both boys (and several of Hayden's friends) asked if I couldn't please make those same valentines we made last year?

So we settled on a compromise. With coughs and sniffles in the house (mostly me!) I didn't think homemade treats would be a good idea, but we could still make the same matchbook style of valentine with chocolates from the shop.

As it turned out these valentines really don't take so long to make, when you don't make the chocolates too! Both boys were keen for a monster theme so I got to have a play with the 'Make a Monster' stamp set. 4 sheets of white card and (apologies - I decided to use up some of my stash of retired card - taken with teal and green galore, and a splash of pumpkin pie) 12 sheets of coloured card later (and a bit of cutting, scoring, stamping and sticking) and we were good to go with 48 valentines.

We stamped one of the greetings from the 'Something Sweet' set. It seemed perfect for the occasion. Bridie wants robots on her valentines, but she doesn't need them until Monday, so we still have a bit of time to work on them. We just have to survive the boys impending sugar hit between now and then. Wish me luck!

Simple and Pretty Thank You Cards

2011-02-08T12:46:00.000-07:00

So do you recognise the background 'stamp' for these cards?

Truth be told, while there is some ink on these cards, I didn't use a single stamp. For a quick and easy background I simple pressed my ink pad directly onto the white card - I love the textured look you get. I ran some coordinating card (pear pizzazz) through my bigshot with the 'thanks' embossilit die and then cut out just the thanks word part to use. Add one of the daisies from the paper daisies pack and it was almost done. The final step was to pile up some punched card circles in the centre of the flower, and give them a glaze of crystal effects (for the glue and the shine!)

Waiting for the crystal effects to dry was the longest step of this card, but well worth it, as it makes such a pretty embellishment. The finished card looked so pretty I made up a couple more in Peach Parfait and Daffodil Delight, to add to the collection.

A Pirate Card for an Older Boy

2011-02-01T21:55:00.000-07:00

Projects for boys can sometimes be a bit of a challenge, but I have found that a pirate theme is always well received. The long retired 'Ahoy Matey' stamp set has always been a favourite of mine. The images are fun to colour, and we have made some fun things with it. They do tend to be better suited for younger children though, so I was pleased when SU gave us the 'Beware Pirates' stamp set that has an 'older' look to it, and was even happier when I finally got around to having a play with it!

For this card I wanted to use 'Not Quite Navy' for the main stamped image, and consulted my colour coach for an easy colour combo that would work with that - More Mustard and Cajun Craze (so easy!)

After recently spending an afternoon with my talented friend and upline Rachael Knight, I am feeling inspired to get my Big Shot out more often, and embossing folders are such a quick and easy way to transform a plain piece of cardstock. For this card I gave the cajun card mat some texture using the Square Lattice embossing folder. If you turn it on an angle the crosses become 'x's which are just perfect for a pirate theme (hopefully you can see them in this closeup).

My boys both gave this card the thumbs up so I am thinking I might need to make a few more for the birthday card stash!

Where has the time gone?!

2011-01-31T21:47:00.000-07:00

Oh dear. Is it too late to wish you all a Happy New Year?! The past few months have been pretty hectic for our family, and the time just seems to be flying by. Once again inspiration and the time to create have not often coincided, and the follow up step of blogging about it hasn't happened at all. Now it is time to play some catch up!

Here is a quick card I made a while ago, inspired entirely by this fantastic quote from the 'Sense of Time' stamp set. I am sure I am not the only would who could do with a few more hours in the day?!

The rest of the card involved simply freehand cutting a few wavy lines of card, and rolling out some embossed butterflies using the 'beautiful wings' embosslit die and my under utilised (at the time!) Big Shot.

It came together really quickly (from memory, time was short, and the 'to do' list was long!) but the therapeutic effects of having created something lasted a lot longer!

scrapbooking disguised as homework?

2010-11-12T12:15:00.000-07:00

I had been so sure that when the kids went back to school I was going to have lots of leisurely craft time ('lots' being relative to the zero leisurely craft time I had during the summer break!) As it turns out all that sunshine must have caused some memory loss, because I had forgotten about the fact that when school went back we would be busier than ever. Never mind the leisurely craft time, it's all about the taxi driving, the school activities, the taxi driving, the after school activities, the work trips for Peter, the taxi driving, and trying to keep on top of the laundry. Then you need to remember those other key ingredients that seem to have been lacking lately - inclination and inspiration. There has been a bit of a craft drought around here lately, so thank goodness for homework!

When Campbell came home and told me he had to make a family tree for school, and asked if I had a stamp he could use, I was pleased to tell him I had something even better. It was the perfect excuse to finally try my new Big Shot, and the 'little leaves' sizzlet die, and in no time at all he had more than enough leaves for his tree. It took a lot longer to stick them all on! The tree trunk and grass we cut by hand, and he used punches to cut out all the photos and name labels. We used a piece of 12x12 card as the base for the family tree, so that when he was finished he could put it straight into his album, and he is so pleased with his first ever, made it himself, scrapbook page.

I am pleased that the craft drought may finally be breaking, even if it is just homework disguised as scrapbooking!

Beautiful Wings Butterflies

2010-09-04T08:28:00.000-06:00

Another little taster from the new catalogue for you, and I think this product is going to prove very popular - the gorgeous little embossilit die - Beautiful Wings. I just love the detail and texture you get with these butterflies - five different butterflies (I have used four on this card, there is another, larger butterfly too) and they are so quick and easy to make.

The colours I have used are Regal Rose (a Rich Regal colour from previous catalogues), and the fruity cocktail of Tangerine Tango (an 'in color' from the last catalogue) and Melon Mambo (from the last mini catalogue). These three colours now join together in the renamed, regrouped Brights Collection (along with Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, Tempting Turquoise, Pacific Point, Rich Razzleberry, Real Red, and the new Daffodil Delight).

The front of the card has some texture thanks to the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder. The greeting is from the Teeny Tiny Sentiments stamp set. I was tempted to add some ribbon, but decided that the polka dots and embossed butterflies provided enough texture and interest. As a bonus, the card is less bulky (and so easier to post!)

These beautiful little butterflies make the perfect embellishment, and are just one of several new dies and embossing folders that the new catalogue has on offer. Remember that if you don't have a big shot, most of these (including the Beautiful Wings Embossilit die) can also be used with your cuttlebug.

Something Old, Something New...

2010-09-02T19:39:00.000-06:00

something that has come out of retirement, and of course, something blue! No, nothing to do with a wedding, just a card I made to show you some of what is in the new catalogue. Can you guess which is which?

Something old (Carried over from the last catalogue):

Fifth Avenue Floral Stamp Set (the flower on this card is made from several flowers that have been stamped, cut up, and reassembled)

Cropadile (the little circles in the centre of the flower were punched using the cropadile) and 1" circle punch (for the curves at the end of the greeting)

Something New:

Scallop Trim Border Punch (I used it all around the outside of the mat, and I love it!)

Something that has come out of retirement, or back from a mini:

River Rock - an old 'in color' that is making a comeback - yay!

Teeny Tiny Sentiments Stamp Set - back from the latest mini catalogue - a very versatile greeting set.

Something Blue:

Baja Breeze - an 'in color' from the last catalogue, that has returned as one of the revamped core color range.

Now, while I love this new border punch, I must confess that my favourite part of this card is the flower. I love the texture it has, with a few of the petals turned up, and that lumpy, bumpy flower centre. Worth the effort of cutting out all those flowers anyway!

The new SU! Catalogue is here!

2010-09-02T19:38:00.000-06:00

Just in case you hadn't noticed already! Contact me if you would like a copy of your own, or you can click here, or on the link over there on the sidebar, to view it online. In addition to some exciting new products I was also pleased to see some of my favourites from recent mini catalogues are returning, in addition to some of the most popular products from last years catalogue that have been carried over.

The biggest change, and the one that will take me a bit of getting used to, is the colours in this new catalogue. With the launch of this new catalogue we also get the introduction of the new Stampin' Up! colour range. Remembering that a lot (a LOT!) of colours have just been retired, the new range includes some brand new core colours, some 'in colors' from previous years that have come out of retirement and are also now part of the core colour range, and of course the new in color range for this year. Lots of exciting new colours for us to play with, and SU have put together some great value kits to help us get out hands on them. Click here, or on the colour kit link also over on the sidebar, for more information about those kits.

SU! also have a special offer for new demonstrators available this month. If you sign up to become a demonstrator not only will you get the usual fantastic deal on your starter kit ($590 worth of product for just $339), but this month only, you will also get the new In Color kit (inkpads and cardstock) worth $100.90, completely free of charge. I think that is the best new demonstrator deal SU have ever offered. If you want more details about that, please contact me, or I can put you in touch with one of my talented team members.

Headbands with SU! embellishments

2010-08-30T19:27:00.000-06:00

While we have got a bit of a hair accessory theme going on, I thought I would show you Bridie's new hairband collection as well. These were inspired by some rather pricey (and out of the question!) headbands that Bridie spotted while we were out shopping one day. She was rather keen to bring some home, and wasn't really convinced that we could make some ourselves, for a fraction of the price, and that ours would be even prettier! We grabbed some plain headbands instead, and went home to check out the embellishment stash (and it was around that time that Bridie was swayed to my way of thinking - bling will do that to a girl!) Here is what we have come up with so far:

Like the flowery hair clips that we made, these headbands would make a great little gift, and I have no doubt that there will be more one-of-a-kind, fancy headbands being made, in the not too distant future!

Pretty Flowery Hairclips

2010-08-29T18:28:00.000-06:00

Now that Bridie has a place to keep her hair clips, she needed a few more flowers to really make it look like a cottage garden. So I dug out my felt flowers and eyelets and we transformed some plain metal clips into pretty, one of a kind, flowery hair clips (well - two of a kind, because we made them in pairs!) They are so easy to make, and would make the perfect little gift for a girl who loves her hair accessories.

I used my cropadile to make holes in the clips (actually, I got Peter to do that bit, because his muscles are a bit bigger than mine!) and then it took no time at all to attach the flowers using a coordinating eyelet, and the cropadile again. Disclaimer time - while the cropadile handled the hole making job with relative ease, please remember that any time you use it for heavier duty tasks like this there is a risk you could damage it. If you don't want to use eyelets to attach the flowers you could always use crystal effects, or a hot glue gun.

Bridie is very pleased about her new hair clip stash, and the hair clip holder to keep them in. And with all those pretty new flowers, it really is looking like a cottage garden, don't you think?

Next up, Bridie's fancy new headbands!

Cottage Garden Hair Clip Holder

2010-08-28T21:32:00.002-06:00

Recently I was looking at some crafty blogs, lamenting the fact that I don't have my sewing machine with me, and I came across a great hair clip holder idea at little pumpkin grace.

I thought it would be perfect for Bridie, who is not very good at keeping her clips in one place (let alone in her hair!) I decided instead of fabric, I would make use of what I had on hand, and the cottage wall papers worked perfectly with the frame I had. To make the paper a bit sturdier (I didn't want it ripping the first time we put clips in it) I applied several coats of modgepodge, to both sides of the paper. It worked perfectly. The paper was now more of a cardboard weight, but more flexible, and a lot more durable.

I used the reverse, non dotty side of some razzleberry ribbon for the clips to attach to, and finished the frame off with made it myself embellishment - a ribbon flower, also using the razzleberry ribbon, and a touch of old olive ribbon and a button.

Not only is it a great way to keep Bridie's hair clips together, it also helps to pretty up her room. She is very happy about that! She is even happier with the clips we decorated to go in the holder. - the flowers to go in this cottage garden. The clips in the photo are the 'before' version, but I will take some photos of the 'after' version tomorrow, along with some cute headbands we decorated. Very stylish if we do say so ourselves!

New 25 -50% Discounts on retiring product!

2010-08-25T17:05:00.000-06:00

Stampin' Up have just announced some additional discounts on selected items from the retiring/last chance list:

Item #	Page	Description	Discount	Discounted NZ Price
116342	42	Big Bold Birthday	50%	$ 31.98
116408	100	Seeing Spots	50%	$ 17.98
116344	121	Big Deal Alphabet	50%	$ 45.98
116208	126	In Color card stock (A4)	50%	$ 8.63
105538	127	Bold Brights Stampin' Write markers	25%	$ 51.71
105537	127	Soft Subtles Stampin' Write markers	25%	$ 51.71
105540	127	Rich Regals Stampin' Write markers	25%	$ 51.71
105541	127	Many Marvelous Markers	25%	$ 209.96
105550	128	Bold Brights Classic Stampin' Spots	25%	$ 37.46
105551	128	Earth Elements Classic Stampin' Spots	25%	$ 37.46
105539	128	Earth Elements Stampin' Write markers	25%	$ 51.71
105552	129	Rich Regals Classic Stampin' Spots	25%	$ 37.46
112042	132	Urban Garden Designer Series paper	50%	$ 9.98
112041	134	Bella Rose Designer Series paper	50%	$ 9.98
107305	152	Oval Large punch	50%	$ 17.98
113692	152	Eyelet border punch	50%	$ 17.98
109043	152	Scallop Circle punch	50%	$ 17.98
113694	152	Heart to Heart punch	50%	$ 17.98
112082	152	Wide Oval punch	50%	$ 17.98
112091	152	Scallop Edge punch	50%	$ 17.98
113693	152	Full Heart punch	50%	$ 17.98
104310	155	Crafters' Tool Kit	25%	$ 68.96
112004	AW28*	1-3/4" Circle punch	50%	$ 17.98
116629	CO*	Butterfly punch	50%	$ 17.98

As with all product that is retiring these items will only be available until the end of August, or while stocks last. To see the complete list of retiring product you can click here. To see a list of product that is running low, or sold out already, you click here, or on the link at the top of my blog (right under the photo of Campbell and Bridie admiring their scrapbooks!)

Contact me ASAP if you would like to order any of this retiring product. With discounts like this it is likely to go fast!

Baby Shower Butterflies

2010-08-06T21:09:00.000-06:00

I am loving the single butterfly stamp from the mini catalogue, and when I needed a card and gift bag for a baby shower recently I decided that the butterfly would be perfect for a sweet baby girl and her mama, (who has two boys already and so not a lot of pink butterflies in her life!)

I used the retiring Pink Pirouette patterned papers to make the gift bag, teamed with pink pirouette ribbon for the handles, and an assortment of pink inks for the butterflies on both the bag and the card.

The sentiment is from the nursery necessities stamp set (also on the retiring list) because it had to have a hint of baby to it. Alas the photos are worse than usual (an overcast morning on top of our cave like apartment don't make for happy photos) but hopefully you can see enough to get the gist of it!

A Clipboard for the Teacher

2010-08-04T11:45:00.000-06:00

Recently we needed to come up with a gift for Campbell's teacher. Something that would be useful, and not too flowery and frilly. A nice, useful, masculine gift for the teacher. After a bit of thought we decided to decorate a clipboard, and this is what we came up with:

We decided to go with an owl theme - decorating the back with one wise owl on a branch (chipboard from the So Tweet On Board Pack, covered with card, and papers from the Good Morning Sunshine DSP pack) and lots of eager little owls awaiting instruction covering both sides of the clipboard (another sheet of paper from the Good Morning Sunshine pack). We personalised it using letters made with the Timeless Type Junior Alphabet dies from the Autumn/Winter mini catalogue, and then finished it off with some strips of coordinating card (pacific point, kiwi kiss) and some ribbon. Several coats of modge podge help to seal and protect it all.

Campbell was really pleased with his gift, and the teacher was most appreciative. Best of all it was a relatively quick and easy project, and inexpensive too. Perfect for mass production!

The kiwi kiss cardstock, Good Morning Sunshine DSP, On Board So Tweet, Kiwi Kiss ribbon, and Pacific Point Ribbon used in this project are all on the 'last chance list'. Available only until 31 August, or while stocks last.

Last chance to get Retiring SU products...

2010-08-04T11:03:00.001-06:00

The new Stampin' Up! Catalogue is just a few weeks away, so of course that means last chance to get those products that will be retiring. The full list of retiring product can be seen online here. I'm not going to list them all in this post because there are nine pages of retiring products this year - eek - remembering of course with the colour renovation we are saying goodbye to lots of colours (ink, card, embellishments) to make way for some lovely new colours.

There are 95 stamp sets in the catalogue that are retiring, as well as 15 stampin' around wheels (8 standard size, and 7 jumbo) and all of the hostess sets.

You will see that the punches all appear on the retiring list. This is because they are being 'reconfigured' into the new punch style we saw in the latest mini catalogue.

There are five punches that will not be returning though, and these are:

Small Star
Trio Flower
Double Rectangle
Horizontal Slot
Slit

You will also see that some products have been discounted (25-50%) and there are some great bargains. Some of the highlights of the discounted retiring product:

Three punches - Boho Blossoms, Scallop square, and the scallop oval punch are all 25% off.

17 of the stamp sets are discounted by 25%, and these Six stamp sets are 50% off:

A Happy Heart (page 34) now $24.98
Best Wishes and More (page 53) now $28.48
Greetings Eight (page 57) now $29.48
Only Ovals (page 93) now $23.48
Enjoy Every Moment (page 97) now $31.48
All Scallops (page 105) now $33.48

Many of the markers in the retiring colours are discounted (usually $6.75, now $5.06, or even $3.38 for a couple of colours!) as are many of the stampin' around inked cartridges.

Four of the Simply Sent kits are reduced by 25%

Six of the patterned paper packs are 25% off, and Pink Flamingo has 50% discount (now only $9.98 for 12 sheets of paper)

The Simply Scrappin' kits are all retiring, and the I Wish" Simply Scrappin Kit (page 137) is discounted by 25%

Lots of embellishments are being retired (ribbons, brads, buttons, chipboard, assorted flower embellishments, rub-ons and glitter) and there are some great bargains to be had here too.

Double-Stitched ribbons in Rose Red, Chocolate Chip and Bashful Blue (page 150) are 50% off - now only $11.75 Several of the other ribbons have 25% off.

The Chunky Sprinkles Glitter (page 145) is also discounted by 50% (now $18.98 for four colours).

Both the 'Flower Fusion', and 'Flower Fusion Too' felt flower packs as well as the 'Blooms Again' cardstock diecut flowers (page 144) are discounted by 25%.

The 'Blooms' cardstock flower die cuts (also page 144), are 50% off.

Don't forget that all of these retiring products will only be available until 31 August, or while stocks last. I will try to keep a list up to date of what is running low/sold out already! You can find it by clicking the 'What's gone already?' tab at the top of my blog (right under the photo of Campbell and Bridie looking at the scrapbook).

A reminder also that the Autumn/Winter Mini catalogue will also be ending on 31 August.

Let me know if there is something that you want to order.

Share a Cup gift card holder

2010-07-17T16:23:00.000-06:00

When I saw the 'Share A Cup' stamp in the autumn/winter mini catalogue I knew it would be perfect for making some cute little holders for some Starbucks gift cards we were planning to give as gifts. I teamed it up with the new Rich Razzleberry card, ink and polka dot grosgrain ribbon also from the mini (and returning in the upcoming new catalogue too).

I just inked up the cup part of the stamp (leaving off the 'hello' greeting this time). I love the way the polka dots on the cup match the polka dots on the ribbon. Made for each other! This was a quick and easy project that made the gift cards that little bit more special (and hopefully easier to find in a handbag!)

More Big Bold Birthday for Boys

2010-07-14T16:31:00.000-06:00

So here is the second card of the 'Big Bold Birthday' stamp set pair:

Much the same idea as the first, but just the one candle this time, and some ribbon thrown in, just because it matches so well! Best of all, these cards would work well with any colour combination, and for birthdays of all ages.

I feel a production line coming on!

Big Bold (Boys) Birthday Card

2010-07-13T17:23:00.000-06:00

I have long been a fan of the 'Big Bold Birthday' stamp set. I suspect that when the new SU catalogue comes out this stamp set will not be there, which is a shame because it really is so versatile. After all - everyone loves presents and cakes right?! It was perfect for a birthday card for Campbell's friend last week, complete with just the right number of candles on the cake:

I crimped a tiny scrap of 'Good Morning Sunshine' patterned paper to make the cupcake paper, and that was also the inspiration for the colours used. Some glitter on top of the cupcake and of course those candles, add a bit of sparkle (just enough to make it fancy, but not enough to make it girly - heaven forbid!) and some quick wheeling with the Happy Happy Birthday jumbo wheel helped to finish the card off.

We wrapped the gift in plain paper and left the card out of an envelope (hanging it from some coordinating ribbon instead) to show it off. The boys approved, so I decided to make another similar card while I was on a roll, to put away for the next party. I'll post that one tomorrow.

Capturing those travel memories (an alternative to the traditional scrapbook)

2010-06-30T21:31:00.000-06:00

We have been very fortunate over the past 18 months in that we have been able to do a lot of traveling together as a family. We have seen lots, learned lots, made so many wonderful memories, and taken a LOT of photos.

Those of you who know me well may be shocked (SHOCKED!) to discover that not a lot of scrapbooking has taken place. Yet. As always, I have some very good reasons for my procrastination. I am not convinced I want to do each page in triplicate (one for each child) and then another one for me. I thought about doing a page for each child from their perspective, and then an overall summary type page for our family album, but that will be an even bigger job. I started to wonder if the kids will even care if they get a page for every trip? Could I wait for the end of this particular adventure, and then do a few summary pages for each album with some highlights? Maybe. I think I might do something like that. Or maybe something else? I am still formulating my plan when it comes to the traditional travel scrapbook!

In the meantime we did come up with a great way to capture those travel memories, in a way that is useful as well as ornamental. We bought the kids a blanket each, and they have been collecting blanket patches on our travels. We tried to imagine a big map outline on the blanket and attach the patches in roughly the right spot, so that helps the kids to remember where we have been too.

They are all very proud of their blankets, and the patches that they have - many of them they have earned through Junior Ranger Programs. It does help to have Nan come for a visit though, when you have a backlog of patches to attach! Some areas of the blankets have more patches than others, but we told them when they are older they can come back themselves and fill in the gaps. For the boys especially, I think that is more likely than them adding scrapbook pages to the album.

Another bonus to getting the patches is that they often come with a handy piece of cardboard that has a brief overview of the place we have visited.

You can be sure I am squirreling those away for the day when I finally get around to some actual scrapbooking of our travels!

Been taking a break...

2010-06-29T09:21:00.000-06:00

Oh dear. Has it really been a month since I posted here? I guess I have been taking a break! A frenzy of school trips and parties and concerts, as well as family visits, and the resulting traveling and exploring and having fun, has been keeping us busy. Not much time spent on crafty stuff. I did do some thinking and talking about crafty stuff. That counts, right? I did acquire a couple of new ~~toys~~ tools. That has to count! I just didn't have the time (or was the inclination?) to blog about it, but hopefully that is about to change. The new USA Stampin' Up! catalogue is about to launch, and that will give us a good indication of what we will see in the new NZ/Aust in September, not to mention a lot of wonderful new inspiration (and inclination!) I am wondering how the internet will handle all those eager people, hitting the SU website on July 1? Just don't crash before I get there!!

I do have a couple of projects (alternatives to the traditional scrapbooking methods of perserving those travel memories) that I have been working on, one of which should hopefully be arriving in our mailbox today. I am looking forward to sharing those, along with a couple of teacher gift projects that we did a few weeks back. Just have to find the photos.

Taking a break is also a very good excuse to get back into some crafting today. Although we might have to go and buy some more masking tape first. Hayden has been doing some creating of his own - making monsters and dinosaurs from an old phone book and a lot of masking tape. It is keeping him nicely entertained. Now, how to keep the other two out of trouble?!

Some Sunshine for the Teachers

2010-05-28T21:33:00.000-06:00

Not a lot of crafting happening in this house lately, but we did take some time out from all our activities this week to make some little gifts for Bridie's teachers. The combination of Washington Apple patterned paper, and the saffron and red riding hood card and ribbon really gave this 'post it 'note holder project a bright and sunshiny feel. Bridie was really pleased with them, and her teachers loved them. Success all round!

A Challenge Card for Mother's Day

2010-05-05T23:26:00.001-06:00

First things first - Mum, Look away!

Okay, now on with the show. Creative time has been a little short around here lately, and when that happens, I find that challenges are often just the kick start I need to get creating without too much mucking around and wasting of precious time.

For this card I used two different challenges for my inspiration. The first was the Inkspiration Inspiration Challenge #21:

The second was the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge #67 :

I used the 'Fifth Avenue Floral' and 'Short and Sweet' stamp sets, an assortment of inks and markers (saffron, pretty in pink, rose red, regal rose) and card (pretty in pink, regal rose, and pink pirouette) and finished the flower off with a half pearl bead from the pretties kit. The patterned card started life as a plain white piece of card, but some stamping and sponging transformed it into a perfectly coordinated patterned piece instead.

Hoping to squeeze in a bit more craft time tomorrow - probably with the help of another challenge or two. Blogging about it though, is a whole other 'wait and see' kind of story!

Party Favours for 10 Year Old Boys

2010-05-04T09:50:00.001-06:00

Earlier in the year we celebrated Hayden's 10th birthday. Last year he had only been at his new school about a week, and so a party with friends was not on the agenda, but you can bet he wasn't going to miss out this year! Instead of a party though, he and his friends decided they really wanted to go to a movie. The boys have all read and enjoyed the Wimpy Kid series of books, and they all agreed that 'Diary of a Wimpy Kid' was the movie they wanted to see. Of course, the movie hadn't actually been released when they made this decision, but they agreed it would be worth the wait!

Which worked out well for me too - it gave me time to figure out what to do about those party goody bags. Do 10 year old boys even need party favours? (a quick survey revealed that YES! We HAVE to have goody bags Mum!)

And then I remembered the pile of hardcover notebooks I had in my bargain box. I had originally picked them up (for just $1 or $2) thinking they might be good for teachers gifts. Instead, I realised they would be perfect for the boys - which just a little bit of 'decorating' by me first.

I wasn't sure if the boys would appreciate being called 'wimpy' themselves, so I took the liberty of changing it to 'awesome' instead. I was still a little nervous about how they might be received, and was so pleased to see that the boys all loved them. And just quietly - if you need to keep a group of ten year old boys quiet at a restaurant while you wait for the food to arrive - give them their own diary to write in - I think the staff were shocked at how well behaved and quiet they all were (and I don't think their teacher would believe it without photographic evidence!)

As for the thank yous - we figured we had two choices. Hayden was initially leaning towards a note with a booger attached (actually a glue dot carefully coloured with ink!) but then when I made a 'stinky cheese' prototype he decided that would be better. Nothing like giving your friends the cheese touch!

Disclaimer time:

1. If you haven't read the book you will just think I am being gross now - but I assure you - boogers attached to notes, and stinky cheese slices were not my idea - it is all taken straight from the Wimpy Kid, and despite the gross factor - ten year old boys - and their six year old brothers, love it!

2. While the diaries are great for keeping kids quiet, it is a good thing you don't give the thank yous out right there in the restaurant. Yelling and running and kids having fun is pretty much guaranteed. Quiet time - not so much!

Spreading Some Sunshine!

2010-05-03T13:43:00.000-06:00

Well lucky me! The lovely Helen Williams sent me some sunshine yesterday. If you need a present for Mother's Day Helen has some gorgeous bookmarks over on her blog, not to mention a very clever circle flip up book.

Having received the sunshine award, it is now my turn to pass it around!

Here are the ‘rules’ for the award.
1. Put the Sunshine Award on your blog and/or within your post.
2. Pass the award to other bloggers.
3. Link the nominees within your post.
4. Let them know they received this award by leaving a comment on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to the person from whom you received the award.

So, the bloggers I am going to send the sunshine to are all a wonderful source of inspiration and support to me - lovely ladies who I have been lucky enough to have met through Stampin' Up.

In no particular order, please help me send some happy thoughts the way of:

Rachael Knight
Roz Begbie
and Diane Robertson

If you have a few minutes please go and see the wonderful creations these ladies have been making (maybe have a snack before you visit Diane as she is frequently making wonderful things in the kitchen and making me feel hungry with her posts!)

Thanks again Helen. You made my day!

Inspired by... Sparkly Shoes!

2010-05-02T11:59:00.001-06:00

Take one little pair of sparkly shoes:

Add some card and pink ink, sponging and masking, vintage vogue stamps, a butterfly punch, heat and stick powder and some dazzling diamonds glitter...

And you get one happy afternoon and a pretty girls birthday card, which I think fits in with the latest challenge (Birthdays?) over at Corrosive Challenge.

Now just to get to the Post Office....

More Vintage Vogue

2010-04-27T13:57:00.000-06:00

I promise you - it took less time to make the cards than it did to blog about them! Paper mache rocks for Hayden's Shakespeare Club performance have been taking up my time - but all finished with now, thank goodness (and pretty realistic looking they were, if I do say so myself!)

So back to the vintage vogue one sheet wonder... This lot of cards really were quick and easy. Sponged edges, crimped card strips, layers of card, stampin' dimensionals to pop some of the elements up, and a quick stamped sentiment (or a selection of those things!)

The second card was super basic - a strip of the stamped one sheet wonder card matted on some perfect plum card that had been crimped and a quick sentiment stamped in coordinating ink. I could have added so much more, but sometimes it is nice to keep it kind of simple (and if I remember correctly, I was due at the bus stop right about then!)

Of course, the plan was also to use every last little scrap of my original stamped one sheet wonder card (I still had some left after these cards), so the rest of that strip I had cut for the last card, was cut into squares to make this one. Originally I had been planning on having another longer strip but with a different card orientation to the last one, but somewhere along the way it transformed into this. But that is what the playing is all about - making stuff up as you go along, and having fun doing it!

The first of the Vintage Vogue 'One Sheet Wonder' cards

2010-04-20T10:56:00.000-06:00

Before I show you the first of the cards I made I want to quickly explain what my understanding of 'one sheet wonder' is. For me it is getting a plain old piece of card (in this case white, but it can be whatever you want) and going to town with your stamps and inks and decorating up the entire piece of card. I am a fan of Do It Yourself (DIY) patterned papers, and this is exactly what this is! When you are done you have a one of a kind patterned card that you can then use for all kinds of coordinating projects.

One sheet wonder = DIY patterned paper

(at least, that is my take on it!)

What I like about it is that not only are you guaranteed to get the perfect patterned paper for your project (!), it is also a great way to just play, and is especially good for when you are in the mood for creating, but don't have a specific project in mind. I used the lovely new vintage vogue stamp set and grabbed perfect plum and pale plum, along with mellow moss as my ink colours. You can see it all stamped up and ready to go in the last post, if you didn't already :) When it came to making projects I just needed to pull out the coordinating card and other embellishments, and play some more. Easy and fun!

Obviously the patterned paper was all flowery and pretty and best suited for girly projects (which, when I set out, was going to be an assortment of cards, little gifts, mini scrapbook project... but ended up being all cards!) My first thought was how nice a butterfly would look with that flowery background:

I punched out one butterfly in each shade of plum. I used silver cord to tie them together, and threaded on some little silver spacer beads from the pretties kit for the body (I always forget to use those little spacer beads!) The pale plum butterfly was then attached flat to the card front, and the darker, top butterfly has the wings free, and folded up to look like it is flying.

I sponged the edge of the patterned card, and added another girly touch with the eyelet border punch, but didn't bother with a sentiment. Sometimes it is good to have an 'any occasion' card on hand, and you can always add a sentiment to the inside of the card as needed.

I really liked that butterfly embellishment, so added one to the next card too - although this time with a couple of loops of silver cord instead of beads, for the butterfly body.

I stamped one of the sentiments from the vintage vogue stamp set on a scrap of card, and added that too, along with some more scraps (I don't have any plum ribbon, and was too lazy to colour any, so card strips made an easy alternative). I did run the moss card strip through the crimper first though, to add some interest. And that crimping led me to the next group of cards... (coming soon!)

Still Here!

2010-04-18T11:04:00.000-06:00

Oh my goodness - I have been a slacker on the blogging front lately, and just quietly, craft time has been hit and miss lately too. Family time has taken over. That and housework. And school activities. And family adventures, and taking photos, and blogging about family adventures (I have a tendancy to want to explain every little detail, and that has a tendancy to take a lot of time, as some of you may have noticed!) and school assignments, and upset tummies, and did I mention housework?!

We have another crazy week coming up, but I have made a promise to myself that there will be some crafting in amongst it somewhere, and some crafty blogging too. And just to show you that I mean what I say, here is a little glimpse of what I have been playing with - the very beautiful vintage vogue stamp set that has just become available in the newest NZ/Aust mini catalogue - I will be working on updating the catalogue links over there on the sidebar this week too!

Now I know that this 'one sheet wonder' doesn't look that exciting right now (not to mention the terrible lighting), but it is in the process of being transformed into some lovely projects that are a lot more exciting, and I promise that it won't take me another 5 weeks to get around to sharing them!

Another Masculine Card

2010-03-10T15:31:00.000-07:00

Recently Hayden's class had a unit on Ball Room Dancing. They had lessons over several weeks, culminating in a 'Red Hot Ballroom Dancing' competition, which they all loved. They took it really seriously too, with all the kids dressing up for it - meaning, for the boys - shirt and tie (for the lessons and the competition). Hayden does have a tie of his own, but when one of his teachers produced a box of ties for the kids to borrow he decided he would do that instead. Which was great for me - it gave me the perfect opportunity to make one of these men's tie cards :

I had seen a tutorial a while back, and had filed some notes away in a folder. Unfortunately I failed to note where I saw it, so if you know please remind me so I can give credit where it is due.

I had intended to have a more, well, 'sophisticated' tie on the front of this card, but then I saw the 'Good Morning Sunshine' papers and it reminded me that the ties in the borrow box did tend towards more of a 'retro' feel. I teamed the tie up with some saffron, pacific point and chocolate chip card. It is a little hard to see in the photo, but the tie and 'collar' really pop up off the card. I think it will work really well as a thank you to Mr D from Hayden.

Lots of Candles Masculine Birthday Card

2010-03-05T16:56:00.000-07:00

Some days I don't feel much like crafting. Some days I don't feel much like blogging. And then there are entire weeks when I don't feel much like doing either. Obviously this has been one of those weeks! Thankfully there are lots of challenges out there to help me get back into it, and inspire this manly birthday card I made this afternoon:

The colours came from the latest Stamping 411 Colour Inspiration - old olive, not quite navy, close to cocoa and more mustard. The design was inspired by the latest Mojo Monday sketch, although as you can probably tell, I did manage to put my own spin on it again. These things have a tendancy to evolve a bit in the making!

Never mind, still got me back into the crafting and blogging - at least for today anyway!

Stamps used for this card: 'Sanded' background, 'Big Bold Birthday' (candle) and the SAB set - 'Whimsical Words'

The 'Back and Forth' Book

2010-02-23T10:16:00.001-07:00

One of the treasures I had stashed away in the box of bargains was a simple exercise book (or composition book, if you prefer!) Not exactly an amazing bargain, but I had bought it with a specific project in mind. I wanted to use it as a 'back and forth' book for our son Hayden, in an attempt to encourage him with his writing. Now if you know Hayden you know he doesn't lack good topics to talk about, or the words to do it (and he can do it for a loooong time!) When it comes to writing though he is not so keen. Why write it when you can just say it?! I figured anything is better than nothing though, and a book for him to write whatever he wants for us to read, and for us to write back to him, might be worth a try (and hopefully wouldn't feel too much like homework!)

We could have just used the exercise book as it was, but I think that if it looks kind of special, then he might take it more seriously, and even treasure it a bit more. I am pleased to say the effort was worth it - he thinks it is pretty cool, and the other kids are lining up now to get their own (I might have to check what else I can find in that bargain box!) I didn't take a before photo - I am sure you can picture it in all it's 'ready for school work' glory. Here is the after photo - and not a hint of school to be seen:

At first I was planning to use the Baja Blue patterned papers, but when I went to get them from the box I saw this spotty paper from the Urban Oasis pack, and changed my mind. I am so glad I did. I think the baja papers might have looked a bit too baby boy, while this combo looks much better suited to a newly turned 10 year old.

Being stingy, I wanted to use just one sheet of paper to cover the front and the back of the book. Of course, it wasn't going to be wide enough, so I used some narrow strips of 'going gray' and a kraft spine to hide the gaps. I added some double rectangle punching to the edge of the kraft card, to let the gray show through, and add a little interest, without getting all girly.

The 'To you, from me' bit was done using the long retired (but not forgotten!) Newsprint Alphabet stamp set, with kiwi kiss ink. I matted it on gray and kraft, and added a few linen thread stitches to fancy it up a bit. I also added a touch of twill tape, to match the piece that attaches to the spine, that will be used to mark our place in the book. Love those built in book marks!

I finished it up with a few circle embellishments. The Wild West Alphabet 'H' was punched then matted on a 1 3/4" circle of kraft card that fitted perfectly in the aluminum metal edged tag. I added a couple of circle and star designer brads next to that and three plain little silver brads at the top of the kraft spine.

Inside the book I kept it pretty simple - after all, writing is supposed to fill that bit up! I couldn't resist adding a little bit of encouragement and inspiration though, so searched my stamp sets for appropriate stamps, cut them out and attached them to random pages throughout the book.

And there was one last embellishment added to the back cover (so not quite so obvious) - a little bit of icky 'Mum loves you' stuff!

So far, so good with the back and forth book.

Not too homework feeling at all!

You & Moi Scallop Notes

2010-02-15T10:29:00.000-07:00

Okay, so one last valentine project to share - this time the little cards I made for my children. I used a couple of the stamps from the 'You & Moi' set and the handy little scallop note cards that are in the current Summer Mini Catalogue.

I stuck with baja blue for the boys, with a not so frilly stamp, and for Bridie - pink pirouette and a flower, of course.

Both designs had a bit of silver thrown in as well, the image was popped up with dimensionals, and I added a little loop of ribbon to fancy it up. I extended the front of the card with an extra white scallop, and finished it off with some more silver card.

Bridie asked if she could keep it forever? Of course you can baby girl!

Matchbook Style Chocolate Holder Valentines

2010-02-14T07:53:00.001-07:00

Last year for Valentines Day we wanted a quick and easy card to make. While the card we made last year was a straight forward card, and reasonably quick to make, all those knotted ribbons were a bit of a pain. This year both of the boys needed valentines, meaning we had twice as many to make, so I went executive on it, and declared there would be no ribbon! Instead we decided to make some chocolates (well, melt chocolate and then put it into molds with assorted NZ images) and I figured out a little matchbook style holder for them, which could double as a card.

I cut a piece of card 7.5cm x 21cm (which meant I could get four from each A4 card) and scored it at 2cm, 11.5cm, and 12.5cm.

I then cut a stack of white card pieces - 6.5 x.6.5cm (12 from each A4 card). It was a quick job to then stamp assorted images on the white squares and attach them to front of the matchbooks.

I used the same friend sentiment that I had for Bridie's valentines (from the 'cheep talk' stamp set) and stamped it inside the matchbook. While the boys then signed their names, I put the chocolates into little bags and stapled them into place, with the folded over opening of the bag, tucked under that 2cm flap.

I was expecting it to take a long time, but in fact it was much quicker than I thought it would be. Waiting for Campbell to sign his half was the slowest part of the process, but mainly because he kept stopping to watch I was doing!

60 Valentines later... they looked great, and smelled better, but alas, we didn't have any left over. The boys didn't seem to mind though - they both came home with a bag full of assorted goodies they had received from their friends. Let the sugar high pass quickly!!

Valentines for Bridie's Friends and Teachers

2010-02-13T15:56:00.000-07:00

This week the kids have all had Valentines parties at school, which of course requires them to have valentines to share with their classmates. Although it would have been a lot easier to go out and buy some (we needed quite a few after all!), what is the point of having a cupboard full of crafty stuff if you don't use it? So the production line was started up again, and 78 valentines cards were made.

First up were Bridie's. Initially she wanted them to have cars for boys, and flowers for girls, and all sorts of different colours. The potential for tears (from Bridie and her friends) if they didn't get the 'right' colour or design convinced me to convince her, that maybe we could stick with birds instead. After all, the friend sentiment in the 'cheep talk' stamp set would be perfect for preschool valentines cards, and those little birds really are cute:

We broke out some card from the retired pile (because kids aren't worried about a little detail like that!) and satisfied Bridie's desire for different colours, by alternating a pomegranate mat on a wasabi card, with a wasabi mat on a pomegranate card. The stamped card front was the same for all the cards. She was pretty happy with the results, and quickly set to the serious business of signing all those valentines:

We had had plans for some baking for the teachers, but didn't quite get there. With all the valentines we were making, as well as Hayden's birthday this week (and the associated baking that went with that) we decided to go for a quick and easy little bag of chocolates instead.

We wrapped some Raspberry Tart patterned paper around the chocolates to pretty them up, put a matching little topper on the bag, and finished it off with one of the clever flowers that Megan McDonald has been inspiring us all with this week.

I think I will have to keep a stash of these chocolates hidden away for those times we need a quick little gift. It is easy enough to choose a paper to suit (pretty and girly or all masculine and tough) - and who doesn't like chocolate? (or know someone to share it with?)

'Celebrate You' Scrapbook Layout

2010-02-10T13:55:00.000-07:00

A few months back I made this carousel note card using the always lovely 'Fifth Avenue Floral' stamp set. As I played around trying to figure out what I wanted to do, I ended up with two of those stamped circles. When the card was done I set the spare stamped circle to the side, and imagined it on a scrapbook layout, with a few more circles, and another carousel note. And it has been waiting ever since. Well, until now that is.

It turns out that getting myself organised was the hardest part. I already had that 'celebrate you' stamped circle, and the scalloped baja blue circle is a carousel note - all ready for me to just add some journaling. I used my circle scissors to cut out the small kiwi kiss circle, and then all those blue and kiwi rings in varying widths.

The finishing touches were some butterflies from the 'Butterfly Prints' stampset, with a touch of bling to match Bridie's tiara. I am really pleased with how it all came together, and Bridie is very happy to have another layout in her album. Her favourite part? Why, the tiara she is wearing in the photo - of course!

All the bits and pieces:

card - basic grey, kiwi kiss, baja blue, white

ink - basic grey, kiwi kiss, baja blue

stamps - Fifth Avenue Floral, Butterfly Prints, A little Birthday Cheer (the 'celebrate you')

other - baja blue carousel note, basic grey stampin' write marker, circle scissors, butterfly punch, rhinestone brads (ice, circles)

Simple but beautiful butterfly card

2010-02-09T16:39:00.000-07:00

I am really loving the butterfly stamp from the 'Dreams du Jour' set right now. I love the fact that it is an outline stamp, so if you want to colour it in, like I did for this Kristina Challenge card, you can. I also love the fact that there is enough fine detail in that outline, that if you want to, you can just stamp it out in a single colour and it still looks fantastic - especially if you have a few in different colours:

For this card I really wanted the focus to be on those butterflies, and originally set out to have just some stamping on a single piece of white card. Unfortunately the white card, while perfect for stamping on, is not the heaviest, and the card seemed a bit too flimsy. Instead I trimmed it up and attached it to a teal card base, to match that teal sentiment. I was pleased with the finished look - having the teal didn't take away from the butterflies at all, and I think I ended up with a more balanced card.

The colour combination of taken with teal, real red, and apricot appeal came straight from the latest Stamping 411 colour inspiration challenge. I used my stamp-a-ma-jig to get everything positioned just where I wanted it, but other than that, this card was super simple, and I now I think I love those butterflies even more!

A flower for all occasions

2010-02-08T20:47:00.001-07:00

At the Stampin' Up Convention last year, I was fortunate to have my achievements recognised. Although I missed the opportunity to be congratulated in person by Shelli Gardner - the co-founder of SU (a small matter of me not actually being at the Convention in Canberra!) I did still get my name up on the big screen, and later, received congratulations, a pin, and the stampset 'A Flower for all Seasons' I am a little ashamed to admit, that although I have often admired the stamps, I have only just now gotten around to using them.

As I sat using them I thought to myself that these really are the kind of stamps you could use for any occasion (and then I realised - duh - that will be why they are called a flower for all seasons). After using most of my brain cells figuring that out, I decided I should probably keep the cards easy, so this is what I came up with:

I went with a kraft card base again - I really love the way you can pair this card up with any other colour combo, and it will look good. I wanted to keep the embellishments to a minimum, and use up some of my card scraps that have been accumulating, so decided to go with a couple of card strips, with a scallop edge to one of them. I ended up making a set of them, using three of the four different images, and several different sentiments (birthday, thanks, get well soon) and colour combos:

Best of all, these images, while perhaps not so great for those male recipients, are perfect for girls of all ages - so my girly birthday card pile has increased with the addition of these quick and easy cards. That has got to be a good thing, right?!

A Bold Bright Card with a Tropical Feel

2010-02-03T21:06:00.000-07:00

It is no secret that the Bold Bright colours are not my most favourite - although I have been trying to use them more lately and have been pleasantly surprised more than once! I do love the Kaleidoscope patterned papers though - they seem to me to be a slightly subdued version of those bold brights, and so not quite so scary! They do make me long for a nice Fiji holiday though - I think they have a fun tropically kind of look.

So of course when I saw those wine glasses in Makeesha's inspiration photo, I thought of a nice fruity drink to go along with those tropical papers. Here is the photo:

And here is the card:

I based this card on the latest sketch from Stamping 411 again, but abandoned the planned brads for knots in the ribbon instead. Because the colours in the paper are not too bold and bright, I was able to use pumpkin pie ribbon, even though the card is a nice bright only orange, and I don't think it looks out of place.

Not quite a Fiji holiday, but it is sure to brighten someones day!

Wanted - A Pretty Pony Card

2010-02-03T14:27:00.001-07:00

Cousin Maya is turning 8. She loves horses, and is lucky to have her own white pony named Star. When it came time to make Maya's birthday card the choice was easy - use the horse from the 'Wanted' stamp set. Most of the projects I have seen and made using this set have been with earthy colours, and often quite masculine looking. This time I wanted a pretty pony card, so instead of browns, I went with pink - well an embossed white horse on pink card (the running horses on the envelope were pink though). The finishing touches were a couple of punched stars, some pink pirouette ribbon, and sponging around the edges of all the card and the pink pirouette patterned paper.

The layout of this card was based on the sketch challenge over at Stamping 411. I love the simplicity of this sketch, and think I might have to file it away for future quick card reference:

Now this card has me thinking about a possible bargain bin project from my February challenge. I see more pretty ponies in my future... Stay tuned!

Box of Bargains - February Challenge

2010-02-03T14:23:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I am sure I am not the only one who cannot resist looking through a bargain bin, seeing limitless potential in those discounted goodies, and then taking them home with the best of intentions, most often to gather dust. I'm not the only one, right?

So here is my box of bargains with limitless potential - notebooks, post its, photo frames, wooden drawers, a mailbox (a little one!), coasters, more notebooks....

(not so bad, right?!)

And here is the challenge I set myself for this month. Transform those bargains into beautiful things. I may not get through the whole box, and I am okay with that, but hopefully I will get a few fun projects checked off the list (and make some room for future bargain bin treasures!)

Feel free to join me!

Another fun pirate card

2010-01-30T16:08:00.002-07:00

Well I said I was having fun, and there has been a parade of pirates here this week, but I think this card is my favourite (along with the circle one from the beginning of the week). I have really loved using the jumbo map wheel that coordinated with the pirate set (sadly both now retired), and figuring out different ways to have it hidden away, but still ready for a pirate to consult - interactive style cards!

This card definitely falls into the 'hand deliver only' category, because it really wouldn't work in an envelope!

I attached the map to the card base at one end using eyelets, and then threaded some hemp twine through so it can be rolled up and tied to hold it in place. Then it can be easily unrolled and consulted whenever the pirate needs to check his treasure hunting progress.

My little pirates approved anyway - boys and girl, and my stash of kids card is growing. Although I think that next week I might have to work on some more girly cards, or at least, pirates wearing pink!

A double challenge card (with coral!)

2010-01-27T22:12:00.002-07:00

Cameo Coral has never been one of my 'go to' colours, and I'm not sure it ever will be, but in small doses it can really make a project pop. So of course I couldn't pass up the opportunity to take part in Makeesha's colour challenge, and use up a bit more of my meagre coral card stash. These were the colours:

And to add to the fun I decided to make this a double challenge card, with Karen's Sweet Sunday sketch challenge as well:

I used my favourite stamps - Fifth Avenue Floral, and bent the rules a little - instead of circles I decided to cut the flower out, and go with a bit of layering.

Here is a closeup of the flower. That little splash of coral really does look pretty - don't you think?

(and now back to my pirate card production line - I am having fun!)

Pirate Card (with a hidden treasure map!)

2010-01-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

Campbell has another birthday party to attend this weekend - this time a pirate themed one. Although it has been retired a while, the 'Ahoy Matey' stamp set (and matching jumbo wheel) always was a favourite of mine (the first project I posted on this blog was a birthday card for Hayden, using this set), and this seemed like an appropriate time to get it down from the shelf. It has always been perfect for quick and easy cards, but this time round I was inspired by the latest NZSU challenge (which was inspired by Patrice's card, that was based on Jackie Topa's tutorial) - got that?!

Anyway, the theory is that a good pirate isn't going to leave his map out in plain view of everyone right? Of course not, he is going to have it hidden away, and this card was perfect. The map can be hidden away until the pirate is ready to reveal all by the simple turn of a handle.

Here it is hidden:

Partially revealed:

Out there for all to see (but let's just keep it between us!):

Then when you have studied your map, you can hide it away again and your secret is safe!

I used caramel ink, and sponged the edges to give it all a well loved, grubby, pirate kind of a look. A splash of colour was added with my recently acquired Earth Elements water colour crayons and a blender pen. As for those big circles? Circle Scissors mean they fell into the quick and easy category too. Love that!

Campbell and Bridie have already asked if I could please make them one of these too. I am thinking it would be handy to have a stash of these for future birthdays too, so might need to set up a production line...

Gift Bag and Birthday Card

2010-01-22T19:38:00.000-07:00

My stash of birthday cards has well and truly been cleaned out - and with lots of birthday parties lately, the cards for kids are especially rare. I think that might have to be my challenge for the coming week - birthday cards for kids ... (you may or may not see posts about that!)

The next party is tomorrow, and this time I decided to make a gift bag first and then used the same (retired) patterned paper as a base for the matching card. It was easy to then pull the colours from the paper when it came time to decorate the card with just the right number of candles for the birthday boy. This 'big bold birthday' stamp set is just so versatile for boys and girls of all ages.

Although I am guessing the birthday boy will probably be more interested in what is inside the gift bag!

Sweet Birthday Butterflies

2010-01-14T12:27:00.003-07:00

Time for another challenge, and some more butterflies. The Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge from Karen Giron is a great one to get you creating. Here is the sketch for this week:

Here is the butterfly birthday card I made based on the sketch:

I clear embossed the butterflies and greeting to make them all shiny and pretty, and used linen thread for the bodies and antennae of the butterflies. I wanted to add a twist of linen thread to the satin ribbon too, so attached the ribbon to a thin card strip first, so that it would hold its shape when I wrapped the thread around.

The butterflies were made using the butterfly prints stamp set, and butterfly punch, both from the new Summer Mini Catalogue. Using the punch is much easier than cutting them out myself! I attached those pretty butterflies with a double layer of Stampin' dimensionals under the wings so they look like they are about to take flight.

Colour Challenge Butterflies

2010-01-11T19:46:00.004-07:00

I was so pleased to see that Kristina Werner had a colour inspiration up on her blog. I always enjoy them, and since they are nolonger a regular feature I couldn't let this one pass me by without giving it a go. So here are the colours:

And here is what I came up with:

As is so often the case I sat down with an idea in my head, and this was not it! Different stamp set, different techniques, different everything, but I really had fun with it. I have used my stampin write markers and aqua painter to water colour the butterfly from the 'Dreams du Jour' stampset. They just look so pretty and were a lot of fun to do.

The sentiment is actually a rub on, from the Summer Mini Catalogue 'chitchat' rubons - very convenient if you don't have (or want) a whole lot of sentiment stamps.

For the finishing touch I was going to tie some ribbon at the top of the card, but decided instead to go with strips of card. Card is less bulky than ribbon, and it also mimics the card layers around the butterflies more than ribbon would (it can also be a less expensive option if you are wanting to keep costs down).

Thanks Kristina, for another wonderfully inspirational challenge.

Ingredients:

Card - Baja Blue, Riding Hood Red, So Saffron, Watercolour paper

Markers - Ruby Red, Cameo Coral, More Mustard, So Saffron

Ink - Baja Blue, Basic Gray
Sentiment Rubon - 'Chit Chat' (NZ Summer Mini Catalogue)

Eyelet Border Punch, Aqua Painter

Happy New Year!

2010-01-11T19:25:00.001-07:00

I hope you have all had a wonderful holiday break, and the New Year has started well for you. For us the holidays went all too quickly, and while I had thought I might do a post or two while we were away, when it came right down to it, I was having much too much fun doing non bloggy stuff. I am sure you were all much too busy to be reading blogs anyway!

While I didn't get any blogging done (or crafting for that matter) I did manage to get my hands on some new toys, and am looking forward to having a play and sharing the results over the coming weeks. This week I am thinking will be all about butterflies. And challenges. I saw that Kristina Werner had a colour inspiration up, so I have been working on something for that one today. That, and baking cookies. Lots of them. This time shaped like Kiwis and NZ, for Campbell to share with his classes. Forgot to take a photo though, so we will just have to make some more for us to eat. Ahh, the sacrifices we make!

First though, back to those butterflies...

Suitcases with Ribbon

2009-12-22T12:27:00.000-07:00

Oh yes. When the suitcases are adorned with beautiful SU ribbons, you know someone is going on a plane. We are headed home for Christmas, and we are looking forward to it (well, once the next day or so is over!) Posts may be a little infrequent over the next few weeks, what with traveling, celebrating, walking on the beach (an actual ocean beach!) and of course, the never ending laundry. Then again, I might just surprise myself (and you!) and manage a post or two...

Oh, and you know those letters from Santa I mentioned a few posts ago? This is what they look like at the other end...

More Last minute Holiday Cards

2009-12-19T20:16:00.001-07:00

What happens when you sit down with the 'Occasionally' stamp set, some kraft card, assorted coloured card scraps and matching inks and ribbons, and your trusty crimper, in order to make just a couple of last minute holiday cards? There is a chance you may get a little carried away, and end up with something like this:

Not just Christmas cards, but cards for all occasions (and this photo was taken after we had given away a couple of the cards already).

After stamping the images on white card, it was a quick job to punch them out with a square punch, mat them on a kraft square made using the bigger square punch, and then attach those to some crimped card, using stampin' dimensionals. Most of the cards got some coordinating ribbon to finish them off, but a few were left more simple.

For the holiday cards I made little sets of cards in a couple of different sizes, and some without the ribbon. They all had the stamped image on the crimped coordinating card though.

The snowman, Christmas Tree, and Candy Cane images were especially good for these cards. And when I had more than enough of those, I couldn't help myself. I had to keep going with some other occasion cards like these birthday ones:

I like the fact that this quick and easy design could be used for boys or girls of all ages, just with a quick change of colour. I especially like them with the wider ribbon, but if you didn't have coordinating ribbon you could use a strip of card and perhaps stamp on a greeting instead. Use some softer colours and swap the images and you have baby and first birthday cards:

You probably get the idea by now. Quite a productive morning on the card making front - not so much the bed making and laundry! Never mind that though, making cards was much more fun, and best of all, if you want to make some for yourself, the 'Occasionally' Stamp Set that I used here is one of several that are currently part of an inventory clearance sale, and is discounted 50% for a limited time.

To see the full list of discounted products, (with discounts from 25-50%) you can click here, or see the link on my sidebar over there on the right.

Quick little gift tags

2009-12-18T22:01:00.001-07:00

It is true that you can find gift tags pretty cheaply (especially from December 26 onwards) but there is something very nice about a hand made tag. They don't have to take a long time to make, and they don't require a lot of supplies (although of course, you can make them just as fancy and embellished as you like!)

These ones fit right into the quick and easy category. They are all made using stamps from the 'Occasionally' stamp set.

It really does have something for every occasion, although as you can see here, I have stuck with the Christmas theme for these ones (afterall, it was Christmas gifts I needed them for!) using white card, and then matching ink and coloured card for the back of the tag (real red, garden green, elegant eggplant, night of navy, and baja breeze with a splash of glitter for those little snowflakes).

Tomorrow I will show you the last minute cards I made using the same stamp set. I might have gotten a little bit carried away!

Clearly some cool packaging!

2009-12-17T12:27:00.000-07:00

Okay, so when you put your gift in clear packaging, you do lose the element of surprise - but somehow it doesn't matter quite so much because it just looks so good!

Miss Bridie decided she wanted to give Hayden's teacher a goodbye present too (being a frequent 'helper' at school, Bridie had formed a lovely friendship with Miss C). While we pondered gifts that might coordinate with the one Hayden had chosen, Bridie announced that she wanted to give Miss C one of the 'spinny decorations' because they were apparently the prettiest (and she likes spinning them around on the hat pin!)

So that was easy! It was also the perfect thing to try out some clear packaging that I had been wanting to do for a while. I used some heavy acetate (saved from some toy packaging, if I remember correctly!) and made one of the super easy and clever triangle boxes. To add a little bit of interest, I used white stazon ink to stamp little snowflakes on the acetate, and then finished it off with some Baja Breeze ribbon, that perfectly matched the papers used for the decoration inside.

It is a little tricky taking photos of clear packaging though!

Best of all, SU have decided that the white stazon ink, that had been in the recently retired Spring Mini, will continue to be available to purchase, as a 'write in' to the catalogue (that just means it isn't listed in any current catalogue, but is still available to purchase). Keeping the White Stazon ink company as a write in, will be the staz on cleaner, the scallop oval punch, and the Jumbo brads that had also been featured in the Spring Mini.

Item #	Item	Price
112534	Jumbo brads 5/16" Neutrals Assortment	$18.50
112533	Jumbo brads 5/8" Neutrals Assortment	$16.25
114889	Scallop Oval punch	$35.95
106960	StazOn ink pad (White pad and refill)	$26.95
109196	StazOn Cleaner	$11.75

For details of any other write in products, updates and corrections to current SU catalogues, please click here - or use the link on the sidebar.

Happy Thursday, or Friday, depending on where you are!

A Teacher's gift using the Spiral Punch.

2009-12-16T11:33:00.000-07:00

Last week Hayden's class said goodbye to the student teacher who had been working in their class for the past few months. He decided he wanted to give her 'something like that thing we gave Mrs Q' - a decorated notebook and matching pen, so that is what we did. We used the lovely Haiku papers, and matching So saffron card, and Tangerine Tango ribbon, and made it so that when the notebook is finished it can be easily removed, and a new one put in its place.

We kept the outside simple - with just a jumbo eyelet and bling brad to fancy it up a little. Instead of a ribbon closure this time we went with a magnetic one (that would be that black thing in the photo above!)

To get the patterned paper to fit nicely to the front of the notebook cover I used the spiral punch along the top. The only problem with this approach, was that the spirals on the notebook were a lot closer together than the spirals on the punch, as you can see:

So, what to do? Why, make the spiral punches closer together, that's what! It may sound fiddly, but is actually really simple. Firstly I made the paper a little wider than I needed, and then punched it with the spiral punch as usual. I then held the paper over the underside of the punch, and lined it up so that the holes in the punch were halfway between the holes that had already been punched. I made a mark on the paper where the guide notch on the punch was, and then cut a little square from the corner of the paper.

The next step was easy - simply position the paper in the punch so that the edge of the cut square is against the guide notch, and then punch as usual. You should be able to see the original holes just to the left of the guide notch.

Here is the paper showing you the original holes only, on the left, with the repunched section to the right.

When you have finished punching the patterned paper, you can match the spiral holes to the spirals on the notebook, and then trim the paper to fit the cover of your notebook perfectly. Easy!

Make a matching card, and your gift is ready to give.

All about the Giving -Part 2

2009-12-15T20:54:00.001-07:00

When we asked Campbell what he wanted for Christmas this year

this was it:

Yep. A goat with an affro. It was on a brochure that had fallen out of a magazine, and he was pretty sure that is would be about the best present ever. And funny too. Yep, that was what he wanted for Christmas.

So we looked at the brochure together (there were lots of other funny animals too - pigs, ducks, donkeys....). And we read the brochure. And we explained that the funny animals were really just funny pictures to catch our attention, but that if we wanted we really could buy a goat (or a pig or a duck), except, we wouldn't get it ourselves. It would be given to a family who really, really needed it. And no, we didn't know who that would be.

And then Campbell told us that he really still did want to get that funny goat for someone, and was it okay if he used his birthday money?

Yes baby, it is.

And then we felt so proud, because he had realised that although getting presents is pretty fun - especially goats with affros, giving presents can be even more fun. Even if you don't know who it is that will be getting that present.

And then we went goat shopping, at Oxfam Unwrapped.

Oh yeah, a goat with an affro and bling!

If you want to, you can go goat shopping too. Or pigs. Or ducks. (Or even a toilet or clean water). Gifts range in price from just a few dollars to more if you want - corporate gifts welcomed too (you know, for all those big business CEO's who happen to be reading my blog!).

Oxfam will take care of the gift wrapping and delivery.

Please note, these links are for the NZ branch of Oxfam, and gifts will support families in that part of the world - Including Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, East Timor, Indonesia, or, depending on the gift, emergency supplies to be used where and when they are needed. If you prefer to support your 'local' branch of Oxfam please visit www.oxfam.org and follow the links for a gift that truly gives twice.

I promise, it will make your heart feel happy.

(and tomorrow we will be back to the gifts that require scissors and sticky tape)

All about the Giving

2009-12-15T20:49:00.002-07:00

Everyone loves getting presents. We may not always know what we want (how often have you been a part of the conversation 'What do you want for Christmas?' and the reply 'I don't know') - but we know we want something!

Then there is the giving. Giving can be fun too - maybe not so much the shopping part, that can be stressful, especially if you just had a conversation like that one up above. Definitely stressful! But it can make your heart feel happy too.

A few years ago we learned about an organisation called Samaritan's Purse. More specifically, their 'Operation Christmas Child' project. When we told Hayden about it he was excited to be involved, and announced that he was going to use his birthday money to buy the presents for his 'shoe box kid'. We have enjoyed taking part each year since, until this year, when we just didn't get ourselves organised in time, and found another way to give instead (a goat with an affro - more on that soon!)

Here is a scrapbook page I did after the first shoebox we filled. This was before SU made it to NZ, so uses non-SU supplies, and Hayden's own writing for the gift tag/title. My idea was to make it look like a big gift box - but it is one of those layouts that I have never been entirely satisfied with. I love the subject, though and so here it is:

Letters from 'you know who'

2009-12-09T20:48:00.001-07:00

If you know anyone who might need a last minute reminder not to be naughty, or a pat on the back for being good, or even just to put a smile of their face - this link might be helpful:

www.freelettersfromsantaclaus.com/free_printable_letters_from_santa.asp

Just so that nobody recognises stamps, or papers, or fonts, or handwriting...

But you didn't hear it from me.

Catering for those Christmas Celebrations

2009-12-08T18:48:00.003-07:00

As part of a European Cultural Fair that Hayden had at school a few months back, he had to find a recipe from Denmark, and then prepare the food (or have his Mum prepare it for him!) He needed enough to share with approximately 120 friends and classmates. The fact that this recipe said it made about 12 dozen cookies was a big part of its appeal - and as a bonus they sounded pretty good too.

So, with the help of the big stock pot (because our mixing bowls were just too small) we mixed up a batch of Danish Butter Cookie Dough. Around this time, we decided that in fact the smallest star cutter would be perfect - giving us 'sample sized' cookies. That of course meant we got a lot more than 12 dozen cookies. This was what 231 cookies looked like all piled up:

And we still had loads of dough left! Thankfully, the dough freezes well, and we were pleased to have a ready supply of homemade cookie dough just waiting to be cooked whenever we needed it.

Now with December here - not just Christmas, but the beginning of birthday season in our house as well, there seems to be one 'catering opportunity' after another. I got to thinking that Danish Butter cookies were just exactly what we needed, and would be a great family tradition in the making. Cookies in the cupboard, and dough in the freezer - ready to go when we needed it, and making life that little bit easier, at this very busy time of year.

It works well for brightly coloured lizards as well!

So here is the recipe for the super yummy, incredibly handy Danish Butter Cookie (Smørdejgskager) recipe, just in case you find yourself with lots of 'catering opportunities' too!

2 cups soft butter 4 cups sugar 6 egg yolks - beaten

1 cup sour cream 2 tsp almond extract 2 tsp nutmeg

2 tsp baking soda 2 tsp cream of tartar 9 cups flour

6 egg whites - beaten stiff

- Cream butter and sugar then add the egg yolks and beat again. Stir in the sour cream and almond flavouring.

- Sift nutmeg, soda and cream of tartar with the flour. Combine with creamed mixture to make a stiff dough. Fold in egg whites.

- Roll the dough about 1/8 inch thick and cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters. Sprinkle with sugar. Place on greased cookie sheets.

- Bake 10 minutes in a preheated 375 degree oven. Will yield about (at least!) 12 dozen cookies.

This time round we made half the quantity of dough, and still have more than enough cookies and dough to go around. When we use the little star cutter we only need to bake the cookies for around 5 minutes, rather than the ten minutes of the recipe. We found the original recipe here:

http://www.mindspring.com/~cborgnaes/ (under cookies and small cakes).

And just when you were thinking this was all about the baking and not so much the scissors and sticky tape, here is a quick scrapbook page I made about the delicious Danish Butter Cookies.

I am still deciding if I want to put this in a Christmas album, a family traditions (old and new) album, or a recipe album, so I kept it kind of simple, and decided to go for an 8.5x11" layout (12x12 just seems a little cumbersome for a recipe book!) Hidden behind the photo is some journaling explaining why it is we happened to have 231 cookies (plus enough dough over for another 231!) and how this Christmas catering 'tradition' is coming about. The main part of the layout is simply the recipe, with some clear embossed stars (from the classic stars jumbo wheel) on the background card, just to fancy it up a little bit. This was a quick layout to put together using the computer for the journaling and title, and I have to say, the recipe album idea is growing on me.

Gorgeous Christmas Decorations

2009-12-07T11:57:00.000-07:00

We weren't quite sure what we would be doing for Christmas this year, and so our decorations went into storage along with most of our belongings. As it turns out, we will be spending Christmas eve on a plane, in an airport, and then in a car midst the holiday traffic, so decorations in storage isn't such a bad thing. Except, it does feel strange not having any decorations at all in the build up to Christmas, and it seems kind of silly going out and getting new ones. But making our own? Now that is a good idea!

So this is where we started. Bridie calls them 'the spinners' because she likes spinning them around. I call them about the prettiest things we have made with the scallop punches, and a great way to make use of the 'tricky bits' of the pretties kits (those whole beads, and the hat pins)!

And once again, oh so simple to make! For these ones I have used some paper from the Baja Breeze patterns pack. All you need to do is punch out some shapes (I have used the scallop circle and the scallop square but you could probably use any shape), fold them in half, and then glue them together until they loop around and join up.

Because the paper is double sided, I made the most of it by alternating the two patterns. The circle ornament was made using 10 punched circles, while the square used 8. You could use more or less as you prefer. For these ones I threaded a couple of beads on a hat pin, put the hat pin through the gap at the centre of the ornament, where all those folded edges meet, and then added a couple more beads at the bottom to finish it off. The hat pins have a 'clutch' at one end to secure everything in place, and a hook at the other end to hang the ornament. Best of all, if you want to, when you have finished with the ornament you could always take it apart and reuse the beads and hat pin for another project. If you prefer to make them more permanent you might want to add a drop of crystals effects when you attach the clutch, to prevent it being removed.

Better than a bought one, that is for sure!

The Perfect 'last minute' Christmas Card

2009-12-06T16:12:00.000-07:00

Did you have plans to make your own Christmas cards this year, but time got away on you? It isn't too late (says the person who hasn't sent too many Christmas cards for a few years now - oops!) This is a card that was my favourite last year, and which, thanks to its quick and easy nature, is a favourite this year too.

Not only is it quick and easy (I timed myself making one and it took two minutes, including mucking around with the stamp-a-ma-jig to make sure the greeting was straight), economical (with just two layers of card and no extra embellishments) and perfect for mass production, it also has a wow factor that defies it's simplicity.

The trickiest bit is preparing the template for the background. I chose an oval, but any shape will do. Once you have your template you can reuse it over and over. I made the outside dimensions of my template card the same size as the vanilla piece that goes on the front of the Christmas card, so that I don't have to think too hard to get it in the right place. Fast and simple is what it is all about! In order to keep the template in place while you are working use a temporary adhesive. I used my two way glue pen, and left it for a few minutes to become tacky and repositional. This allows you to remove the template when you are done, without damaging the card underneath.

If you use the two way glue pen remember that when the glue is blue - when you first put it on - it acts as a permanent adhesive, but if you wait a few minutes it dries off and will appear clear, and the adhesive will be temporary rather than permanent.

Now, it is a little tricky to see in this terrible photo, but the next step is really easy. I used a piece of stampin' sponge to lightly sponge some mellow moss ink around the inside of my oval template. It doesn't look too flash at this stage, but trust me, when you remove the template you will be wowed yourself. If it isn't dark enough for you, you can always reattach the template and do a little more sponging.

When the sponging is done, and without removing the template, I used the line of trees stamp (Lovely as a Tree), inked with mellow moss ink, and stamped off gently (I want these trees to be a subtle background) then stamped onto my vanilla card.

Now the background is done, and you can remove the template. I used Always Artichoke to stamp the single tree, and the greeting (from the Sincere Salutations stamp set) with help from my Stamp-a-ma-jig to make sure the greeting was straight. Attach to a Mellow Moss card base and you are done. Well, you could always add a bit of glitter to those branches if you have more than two minutes to spare.

Then comes the hard bit. Actually sending it to someone!

Bouncing Blossom Tutus

2009-12-02T07:39:00.002-07:00

Like any girl - big or small - Bridie has plans to be a ballerina/princess when she grows up. I think the ballerina bit might be her day job - she is still working on the details - not least of all the prince - 'but where will I find my prince?' she asked me. Ah, that age old question. 'You'll just have to keep looking' was my helpful reply. Sometimes she branches out into fairyland. As long as she can picture herself in some kind of frilly fancy fairy/princess/ballerina outfit, she is a happy girl.

So of course I couldn't resist ordering Bridie her very own Bouncing Blossom Tutu for Christmas. Susie had it sewn in a flash, and ready to post out (keep an eye out Nan). Talk about awesome service! I chose the 'hydrangea' for Miss Bridie, but they are available in a range of colour combinations - either chose from one of Susie's blossoms, or design your own colour combo for a one of a kind tutu. Don't they look pretty?

These gorgeous girls belong to Susie and Matt - Oceana and Bridie used to go to Playcentre and Mainly Music together in Waihi Beach. We haven't had the pleasure of meeting sweet baby Naomi in person but she is reminding me a lot of when we first met the Sams girls - and teeny little Oce was walking already! Walking! Already! (about nine months old early). Whew!

In amongst chasing babies Susie has just launched Bouncing Blossom Tutus and is taking orders now (and if you get in quick you should have it for Christmas). Please head over to her blog for all the details of colours, sizes, prices etc. I know she is happy posting out NZ and USA orders (the tutus are light, so it only costs a few dollars to post) and if you are somewhere else I am sure she will happily send to you too (okay, check with Susie on that, but I am sure it won't be a prob, if you are happy to pay the postage).

I expect to have lots of photos of a VERY happy Bridie blossom from Christmas day, so I will be sure to share that smiley face!

Thankful for...

2009-11-30T20:15:00.000-07:00

Having just enjoyed our first ever Thanksgiving (and just quietly - we cooked us a pretty yummy turkey!) we have well and truly been in 'thankful for...' mode lately. It occurred to me that there are a few SU things that I am thankful for...

Thankful for all the lovely people I have met through this passion/obsession we share!
Thankful for the lovely ladies who support my efforts to be a demonstrator - thank you!
Thankful that SU's vintage brads not only work fantastically as temporary replacements for lost screws in my sunglasses, they work so well that they might even become a permanent part of my sunglasses. Talk about made for the job!
Thankful that there is no more waiting for the new summer mini catalogue.

Despite the fact it could be dangerous!

Thankful that I now have a keyboard with an 'H', because, between you and me, it has been rather frustrating not having it for the past few months!

Thankful for the circle scissors, and the new circle punch, and the butterfly punch, and all the fun projects my wider demonstrator team have come up with for using the new sweet treat cups... (okay that is really just another thankful for the summer mini!)
Thankful for the fact that when my paper trimmer wasn't where it was supposed to be today, it only took me a few minutes to find it in the boys room. Last time it took me a few days. Partly because of the mess in their room. Partly because it just didn't occur to me to look in the boys bedroom for my paper trimmer. Silly me. Where else would they put it after I asked them to please put it away when they were done?!
Did I mention yet, how thankful I am that the wait for the summer mini is over?!

Hoping that next time I post it will to share some projects. But I have a feeling it's going to be one of those crazy weeks! Anyone else fixed their sunglasses with brads before? I tell you, it works great!

Yummy Scrummy Muffins all ready to go

2009-11-23T20:59:00.000-07:00

Remember this stunt muffin?

Well today was the day to bake the actual muffins - Apple and Cranberry - yuuummm!! While the muffins were cooling the kids and I lined up around the table and got a proper little production line going. I was going to take a photo of them in action but then realised we were probably breaking umpteen different child labour laws, so perhaps photographic evidence wouldn't be the best! Instead, here is a photo of those well dressed muffins all lined up and ready to go.

Campbell was a little concerned that we wouldn't know which ones were which once we put them all in one spot. Then he realised that we could just look at the tags - because, afterall - his colouring in was WAY better than Bridie's - 'she just used all orange...' I assured him that Bridie's teachers will love all orange just as much as she does. That made it okay (just as long as they don't get mixed up in the mean time!)

The Grown Up Version

2009-11-22T15:24:00.001-07:00

So for the grown up version of this card (and this, the original one) I put the bug stamps away, and decided instead to use the big flower from the Eastern Blooms set. The design of the card was exactly the same again, just the colours (this time tangerine tango, more mustard, so saffron and old olive) and stamps changed, and this time I left off the brads.

The tango squares were punched from crimped card, and I used the mat pack to piece around the edges of the mustard squares. To add even more textural interest I added a fun centre to those flowers. First I used my cropadile and punched holes in a scrap of saffron card. Next I gathered up all those little punched circles. They do come out with a slight bend in them, and usually I would flatten them off, but for this project I decided to leave them as they were, to help with the texture. I decided that crystal effects would be the best adhesive to use and initially planned to put a blob on the centre of the flowers and then cover it with the saffron circles. I discovered that although they were holding fine, it wasn't as easy to stack them all up in a pile, the way I wanted. Since I was making this up as I went along anyway (are you surprised?!) I decided to turn these squares into textured, glossy tiles instead, by covering that little pile of saffron circles, and the rest of the stamped square too, in crystal effects. This way you can still see and touch the textured centre of the flowers, with no risk of anything falling off, and the high gloss centre doesn't look out of place, because the entire square looks the same.

I really like the way the tiles, and indeed the entire card has turned out, and will definitely be adding this to my list of techniques to use again.

A Girly Birthday Card

2009-11-21T20:30:00.003-07:00

For me, the thing that always takes the longest, is figuring out the initial design of a project. Sometimes I have a clear idea in my mind, and other times I just wing it and see what happens. And then there are times like this, where I recycle a design I have used before. This buggy boy birthday card is still one of my favourites so I decided to do it again - but this time with a girly look to it.

Apart from changing one of the bug stamps (all still from the Bugs and Kisses stamp set), and of course the colours, I decided to keep the rest of the card - the placement of the different pieces and the extra embellishments (brads, crimped squares and paper pierced squares), exactly the same as with that first card. That meant I didn't spend time shuffling bits around and trying to decide what looked best (I can spend a LOT of time shuffling things around!)

After my recent successful outings with the bold brights I decided to keep it up, but must confess, I think I prefer them in smaller doses. Nevermind. I am hoping that it will still appeal to a little girl, even with all those bugs on it - oops, I mean big girl.

Speaking of big girls, I have also made a more grown up version. No bugs this time, but still some fun elements, so that will be the next post.

SU mini catalogue and promo news

2009-11-21T14:36:00.000-07:00

I have some projects waiting to share, but technical difficulties mean I cannot get to the photos again, and the posts just won't be the same without the photos - so, while I wait for Peter to come home and figure it out for me, I thought I would make a quick public service announcement instead.

The Stampin' Up! NZ/Aust Spring Mini Catalogue is coming to a close. You can click on the link over in the side bar (to the right) to view this mini catalogue online, or contact me ASAP if you prefer a paper copy - I think there may still be a couple floating around.

November 30 is the last day to order product from this mini catalogue, and I can tell you that nothing from this mini has been carried over to the new summer mini that will be available from December 1. This includes the very popular scalloped oval punch, the handy white StazOn ink, and the even handier StazOn Cleaner. It is possible they may return in future catalogues, but your guess is as good as mine on that one - I do know they are not in the upcoming Summer mini.

As for the Summer Mini - I can tell you that there is some fun, fun stuff in there - stamps, punches, papers, embellishments - and if you are a fan of circles you are in for a treat! I will have the online link available here on December 1 so you can see what I am talking about.

While I'm talking SU stuff I should also mention the promotions that are running at the moment. Firstly a great Christmas one. SU have put out a Christmas Gift Giving Guide that includes a variety of products. As an added bonus, when you spend $105 on product from the guide you get to choose a free punch - either the scalloped square punch, or the boho blossoms punch - FREE. This promotion is available until December 14. If you are wanting product for Christmas gifts I would recommend ordering ASAP though.

The second promotion - The SU Breast Cancer Awareness Programme, is one for new demonstrators.

For every new demonstrator who signs up before 31 December Stampin' Up! will donate $5 to the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation. In addition, you will receive FREE a pack of Raspberry Tart papers, and a Pretty in Pink Classic Ink Pad. For more information about what is involved in becoming an SU demonstrator you can check here or contact me.

Packaging for a Morning Tea Treat

2009-11-14T11:06:00.001-07:00

I was inspired by the latest NZSU challenge based on the clever packaging idea that Donna Calley had on her blog, and especially loved that beachy theme that Donna had used. I decided it could be a fun way to package up some muffins for a special morning tea treat for the teachers (except I don't think they call it 'morning tea'!) and went with a northern hemisphere autumny look instead.

Introducing the stunt muffin:

Since we haven't baked the actual muffins yet, and it is still a few days before we need them anyway, we decided that a nice piece of screwed up newspaper would double nicely as a stunt muffin - for blogging purposes anyway!

This pacakaging was a little shorter and wider than the original, to make room for a muffin without it being reduced to crumbs. To fancy up that really rust card a bit I stamped it with one of the stamps from the 'Lovely as a Tree' stamp set - with a touch of old olive ink along with the rust ink. The image on the tag is from the 'Window Dressing' hostess set.

Surely that has to be the best dressed stunt muffin in town!

And now a Christmas Carousel Note card.

2009-11-13T12:48:00.000-07:00

While I was playing around making this carousel note card, I got to thinking that those carousel notes did look a little bit like a mighty big Christmas ornament, and how that could work well for a Christmas card. So that became part two of my carousel note challenge. To add to the fun I decided to work with a non-christmas stamp set that is another of my favourites, and which I know a lot of you have yourselves - the ever lovely Baroque Motifs. (I should point out here that the greeting came from the 'Occasional Greetings' set and not Baroque Motifs). I have probably said it before but this is such a versatile set - beautiful for backgrounds or the main focus, and any and all occasions - including Christmas. I used a Ruby Red carousel note, and teamed it up with some kiwi kiss, for a more traditional red and green christmas look.

This time round I decided to work with just one of the carousel notes as the front of the card, and then attached a more conventionally shaped card behind it. This way you get the scalloped circle look, but can still stand the card up easily, a bit like an easel.

After stamping up the vanilla circle with the vines, flowers and greeting, I sponged the edge of the circle with kiwi kiss ink, and then used a two way glue pen to add a dash of diamonds to the flowers - Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without some glitter. It doesn't show up so well here, but in real life - it's sparkly!

The top of the 'ornament' was made from a round tab punch of kiwi card, folded in half then adhered to the top of the carousel note (purely decorative this time, not an actual hinge like on the last card). The finishing touch was a kiwi kiss ribbon bow at the top of the ornament, and some stamping and sponging on the inside of the card.

This really was a quick and easy card to make, but I think it looks really special, and definitely a little out of the ordinary. This card could even double as an ornament - just by threading some linen thread, or even some more ribbon, through the folded round tab at the top. Might not work so well on those really little trees though!

Carousel Note Birthday Card

2009-11-12T07:32:00.000-07:00

Confession time. I love the 'Carousel Notes' and have used them for a few different projects, such as this cute handbag mini album, but I don't think I have used them to make a card yet. Not one that I remember anyway! So I decided it was time for a new challenge to myself, and that was simply to make cards using Carousel Notes. (What's a carousel note? It's a nice big (approx 15cm across) scalloped circle of card, complete with nice square choc chip envelopes, just crying out to be loved!)

I'm not sure why I haven't done this earlier, as they are perfect for a card with a difference, without the need for complicated or time consuming fancy folds etc. For this card I decided to use two of the baja breeze carousel notes, and team it up with a splash of kiwi kiss...

I stamped some flowers on a circle of white card using baja blue and kiwi kiss inks, and then added the sentiment in Kiwi Kiss. The edge of the circle was then sponged with the blue ink, (although this was later hidden!) and I also sponged lightly over the blue flowers.

To help tie in the kiwi kiss inking a little better, I decided to add a circle of kiwi kiss card as a mat. Now is when I confess, that in my haste to cut that circle the ends of the cut didn't quite meet up. Normally this probably wouldn't even be noticable, but when you lay it between two other circles it is kind of hard to miss! Since I didn't have a definite plan of where this card was headed (did you sense that already?) I decided to do a little experimenting before cutting another mat - hoping to hide that slightly imperfect circle shape, and add some textural interest. I wet the edge of the card and then rolled and scrunched, in the same way I had on this layout, and then left it a few minutes to dry.

I am really enjoying the resulting contrast between those elegant flowers and that rough and bumpy border. A little rhinestone brad was the finishing touch before attaching it all to the carousel note. I then lightly sponged the edge of the carousel note with some of the kiwi kiss ink to help tie it all together.

I used the round tab punch to make a 'hinge' to attach the two carousel notes, making it into a card, and then added another stamped white circle to the inside to finish it off.

Recipe for this card:
Carousel Notes (1 pack includes 4 each of Kiwi Kiss, Ruby Red and Baja Breeze)

Kiwi Kiss and Whisper White Card
Kiwi Kiss and Baja Breeze Ink
Fifth Avenue Floral stampset
A Little Birthday Cheer stampset
Rhinestone Brad (circle ice)
Round Tab Punch

A masculine Birthday card

2009-11-11T13:15:00.000-07:00

Well it seems the little problem we were having accessing our photos on the computer was not so much a computer problem, as it was a problem with swinging feet - kids feet that is - swinging, as they sat at the computer, and inadvertently disconnected cables. Annoying, but now that we know what was happening, much easier to fix than a real computer problem might have been!

While we had our temporary photo freeze out I was able to get a few projects done though, and am slowly working my way through the long list of cards needed over the next few months. I also thought it was about time I did a colour challenge - and found this one of Makeesha's that was just what was needed. The colours - chocolate chip, close to cocoa, really rust and vanilla are perfect for a classic man card, as is the 'sanded' background stamp, and the soon to be gone Spring Mini catalogue stamp set - 'Sense of Time'.

I also started off with some of the lovely jumbo brads from the spring mini, but when it came time to put them on they just didn't quite work how I wanted. While I was playing I remembered a great little embellishment idea that I first saw long ago on a project by Jacque, and decided to throw that in the mix instead. I had been wanting to try it for ages, so this was the perfect opportunity. I will confess to a brief moment when I questioned the ability of my cropadile to chomp through all those layers, and then neatly set the eyelet. Apologies Cropadile - it was wrong of me to doubt you - you worked just great - as you always do.

I wavered between the hemp twine and twill tape to finish it off, but decided that the twine had a little bit more of a - I don't know - 'she'll be right temporary man repair' look about it? (perhaps a cable tie would have worked well here?!) Glad I did go with the twine, as having just checked the link for Makeesha's challenge I realised she has a similar embellishment on her card. Don't want them looking too alike!

And so here is where I ended up. A nice manly card with a hint of fancy, but not the frills (or is that frills but no fancy?) Either way it has lots of layers, and a good manly weight to it too! Best of all, another card marked off the list, and another one coming soon!

'I've got my eye on you' Halloween mini album

2009-11-03T21:33:00.000-07:00

My big old monster eye that is!

Here is the first of my Halloween inspired projects. Halloween candy inspired that is. Hayden was delighted to find an eyeball candy in amongst his trick or treat stash. I was delighted to find the packaging that eyeball came in, and immediately claimed it as the perfect embellishment for a scrapbooking project.

I thought it was a bit too bulky for a conventional scrapbook page, but on the cover of a mini album it is just perfect, and I decided to go with an accordian spine album like this one. Once the candy had been disposed of (thanks boys!) I was left with the plastic bubble, complete with red veins. It was a quick job to punch out some circles of card for the eye, and pop those inside the packaging. Best of all, the eye then fitted perfectly inside the 1 3/8" circle I had punched in a chipboard coaster.

Originally I was going to cover the coaster with plain black card, but it looked a little too flat. Instead I stamped with versamark ink and the sanded background stamp, and then heat embossed with clear powder. It looks a bit too shiny in the photo, but is better in real life, and looks like a reptilian monster skin. The back cover also has the embossed sanded look. Inside it is black pages, and that is as far as it got - the printer ran out of ink before I could print the photos, so completing the inside of this little halloween memory book is still on the list of things to do.

So far I am loving this little project, and would love to do some more - I can see this in green, for dinosaur lovers. I will confess, that while buying groceries today, I did keep an 'eye out' for some more of those eyeball candies. No luck though, so it is looking like I might have to resort to cleaning the kids bedrooms, in the hopes of finding more discarded candy packaging...

Five Minute gift packaging

2009-11-02T22:57:00.000-07:00

So first the background story. Hayden's teacher has a collection of magnets from various places that she or her students have visited. Whenever we go exploring he wants to get her one to bring back. Then he forgets all about it until we get home again. Except this time. This time he remembered to get one. He just forgot to give it to her today. He remembered after he had gone to bed tonight, at which point he requested if we couldn't please wrap it up all nicely for her?

What's a mum to do? Of course we can figure something else. But something quick, because Hayden is supposed to be sleeping, and I am supposed to be listening to the sound of all three of them asleep - ahh the quiet! Thank goodness for the very clever, super simple, and best of all, really quick triangle box. Not to mention coordinating card, ink and ribbon (Tangerine Tango) and the always elegant Fifth Avenue Floral stamp set.

Five minutes later, pausing only for a photo, we were done, and Hayden was tucking it away in his bag all ready to take to school tomorrow. It really is so very easy, and not only does it work well with the 5 minute simple approach, the 10 minute something special variety looks fantastic too. (Hard to believe there is a humble magnet in that box!)

I think this might be my favourite gift packaging technique, athough I do really like the bag in a box (box in bag?) approach too. It does take a few more minutes though, and to be honest, I really do like to hear the sound of those sleeping babies!

Candy for Breakfast

2009-11-01T20:17:00.000-07:00

and lunch, and pretty much all through the day... yep - we have just celebrated our first Halloween (is celebrate the right word?) and the kids are maintaining their sugar high just nicely. Big crash coming though. The bottoms of the buckets are peaking through the candy wrappers! In amongst the candy wrappers, I have found some inspiration for some Halloween related projects which I am hoping to get to this week. Also more scrapbooking inspiration from our recent family adventures, just as soon as I get on top of the photos. Not forgetting assorted birthdays, thank yous, and new baby cards that are on the to do list. Hopefully I should have lots to share in the next fews weeks! But right now, time to sneak a bit of sugary goodness I think!

Having a little break...

2009-10-24T21:54:00.000-06:00

Hi everyone,

We are about to head off on another adventure, so I probably won't be posting anything new for a little bit. I have been playing with chipboard the last couple of days though, and I have to say that heat and stick powder is my new best friend! Wow, but doesn't it make those chipboard letters all pretty? (with the help of some glitter of course!) Planning on sharing it with you all soon, once I get through the adventure, and all the subsequent adventure laundry that is ...

Bridie's new Hat.

2009-10-21T11:40:00.000-06:00

So I was sitting there, wondering what SU will surprise us with in the not so far away summer mini catalogue. Thinking about what is available now, and has been available in the past, in their other markets, and of course, making a little wishlist!

I got to thinking about the cute little crocheted flower embellishments that are yet to make it to the NZ/Aust market. Then I got to thinking that, probably, if I put my mind to it, I could make my own crochet flower embellishments (although I would need to find my glasses if I wanted to make them as cute and dainty as the SU ones!) It wouldn't be the first time I have crocheted on a scrapbooking project (but you will have to take my word for that because that album is in storage somewhere - silly me!) In fact, the last time I had crocheted, I am pretty sure, was on that layout.

From there the thoughts went completely away from paper crafty stuff, and were focused firmly on the crochet. A quick trip to the shop to grab some wool, and now Bridie is the very proud owner of an experimental hat (that, just quietly, could possibly double as a toilet roll cover if we were that way inclined!) But we are not. So hat it is. And Bridie is pretty pleased with it. She wants one for her baby doll too.

(based on the 'Peek-a-Boo Flower Hat pattern by Mary Jane Hall)

See - not paper crafty - but I've been working on, and actually finishing, other projects. All is not lost!

Little stamps with lots of layers

2009-10-16T12:33:00.000-06:00

I haven't quite finished with my challenge to use those little image stamps. This time round it is all about one teeny tiny stamped image, and then lots of layers to make that little image appear bigger than it is. I really liked how I got to use lots of different tools and techniques and yet the cards still have a nice, clean and simple look to them.

The first one made use of a handy little 'love note' and matching envelope - working with the small image/small project idea.

The heart was stamped and embossed with gold, to make it that little bit more special, then layered on gold card to really give it some sparkle. I used stampin' dimensionals to attach it to a layer of white card, and then attached it all to a crimped red layer before attaching to the card front.

Just to show you how this idea works with more standard sized cards, here it is again. This time I added another layer of gold to seperate the crimped red from the red card base, and added an embossed gold greeting.

I really like the textural interest of the embossing, raised layers, and crimped card, as well as that metallic shine. It all works together to give the feel of one larger image, rather than just that original little heart. Why is it though, that when it comes to embossing, I can never just look, I always have to touch it too?

Next I used the same idea to make this birthday card.

No embossing this time. The image was stamped with basic gray ink and then coloured using pastels (chalks) and a blender pen. I did keep the crimped layer, and for added textural interest I roughed up the edges of the other layers (no fancy tools needed - fingernails work fine!)

Add some coordinating embellishments, such as these brads, stamp a greeting, and the birthday card is done. What I like best is that this card could work for boys or girls, of almost any age. - very handy! You don't always find a card like that!

And did you notice - all bold brights again (and this time it wasn't on purpose!) I am starting to think that the images from the short and sweet stampset, and bold brights colours, were made for each other!

DIY backgrounds using little stamps

2009-10-06T21:09:00.002-06:00

I have to start by saying that SU! have a fantastic range of stamps just perfect for baby projects - including the Nursery Necessities set I used to make this card. With all those other options available, this pin stamp, cute as it is, wouldn't normally be my first choice. Remembering though, that my challenge is to make use of those smaller stamps that are so often under utilized, and in particular the images from the Short and Sweet stamp set. Nappy pin it is!

I am actually really pleased with how this card came out. I have used the idea of repetition again, but this time in a random fashion to make my own patterned background. Some of the pins are stamped twice before reinking, so you get a bit of variety in the depth of colour of that baja blue ink. I used Night of Navy card to give the baja blue a little lift, and then finished it off with some sponging to soften the edges, and some matching baja ribbon. When you have a ribbon that matches it is almost a crime not to use it!

I have also used this set to make backgrounds for scrapbook layouts, and not just on those mini projects.

The little heart outline was just perfect to stamp on the cocoa card strips for this 12 x 12 layout (although you may have to click on that photo and enlarge it to actually see it!) The rose red strips had word stamps decorating them (including the 'love you' from short and sweet) and the rose red patterned paper pieces came from a single 6x6 piece - the photo and embellishments hide the joins so you would never know!

This is a layout that has been shown lots in real life, but pretty sure I haven't shown it here before. It was full of experimentation and little challenges to myself - the first really girly, frilly, busy layout I had done, and still one of my favourites. Makes me want to get the pretties kit out every time I see it. It also reminds me, that after committing to sewing directly on the layout I discovered my sewing machine wasn't working like it should. The repair man, after fixing it, told me he had never seen that particular problem before, and if it ever happened again I should bring it back IMMEDIATELY! Eek. I didn't tell him I had been using it to sew cardboard! (and I haven't had the courage to use the machine again for anything, let alone scrapbooking!)

Maybe that should be my next challenge?!

Making use of those little image stamps

2009-10-02T12:35:00.001-06:00

In an attempt to get back into the crafting groove I have been setting myself some challenges. The latest one is to make use of those little image stamps that you often find in a set. In particular, I am looking at the great little 'short and sweet' stamp set. This is a popular, value for money stamp set, but I find I am most often using the greetings, and not often the little images that go along.

So, over the next little bit I am hoping to share a few ideas using these little stamps. The first, and easiest idea is of course to use those little stamps on little projects - gift tags and smaller cards. The cute little 'Love Notes' (card and matching envelope) are the perfect size. The second idea, and one I also used for these cards, is repetition. Use that little image more than once, to make it look like a bigger image. I used the stamp-a-ma-jig to help with even spacing. Take that little flower and stamp it out nine times, and this is what you get:

This time I also set myself the challenge of using only the bold bright colours. I do have a couple that I use often, but must confess, overall I am not so much of a bold brights girl (and in fact, I discovered that a couple of my BB ink spots hadn't even been opened before these cards!) I am pleased to say that I have used every single bold bright colour in these cards - and I actually really like them! The fact that the image is a small outline one, means that you get a nice splash of colour, but lots of white also helps to tone it down. That's what I think anyway - what do you think?

Best of all, this idea works just as well on a more conventional sized card (and look - the last of those bold bright colours!)

Campbell's thank you card

2009-09-23T20:12:00.000-06:00

First a little bit of background. Security at school is pretty strict. The external doors are locked. You have to be 'buzzed in' at the main entrance (we're still trying to get our heads round it all). Before school the kids line up in their classes, and the teachers open various doors for them to come inside. Yesterday Campbell was a little leisurely joining the line, and the door closed before he got there. Normally that wouldn't be a problem, he would knock and they would let him in, but yesterday an alarm was going off at that end of the building, and the knocking went unheard. Poor Campbell was not sure what to do, and feeling rather upset. Locked out of school! Then a nice girl came along, and helped him. Taking him down to the front office, so he could join his class. Turns out, that nice girl, also happened to be his teachers daughter. He was very impressed to find that out, and decided he should make her a card. Who am I to argue with that!

After a brief conversation about what girls might like on their cards (hugs and kisses apparently - look out ladies!) he suggested that flowers may also work, and perhaps we could use the punches. So that is what we did, and this is what he came up with.

He has obviously spent a bit of time watching Mum, as he had a very clear idea of what he wanted - right down to the layering of flowers, and 'those sparkly things' in the middle. I especially like the filigree flower on the pink flower (and can hardly believe Campbell used them before I did!)

When it came to the inside I did make the suggestion that a pop-up card might be fun. We stuck with the flowers, and I think it turned out really well. I especially like the bigger flowers he suggested we add to the background. His theory was 'she won't even notice they are not part of the pop-up Mum', and you know what? I think he was right.

As for the hugs and kisses? He didn't forget those! They were added at the bottom, and double as maths homework too - 'look Mum - it's a pattern - x, o, x, o' Homework has never been so much fun!

A 'No Photos' Scrapbook Layout

2009-09-22T18:42:00.001-06:00

Do you remember the first time you really noticed your own heart beat? Heard it? Or felt it booming away in your chest? Wondered what it was, and were delighted when you found out?

I don't. But I was lucky enough to be nearby when Bridie did, and what a wonder filled moment that was! Now I am the first to admit that when it comes to scrapbooking big life moments like birthdays and christmas I am not so flash. New PJs and heartbeats though? Not so shoddy!

When I saw the look on Bridie's face, when I told her the 'popping' she could feel in her chest was actually her heart beating (wonder and delight!) I knew I had to capture the moment for her. I was elbow deep in dinner preparations at the time, so didn't get a photo at the time. I thought about posing her later - perhaps an arty farty closeup of her little hand, clutching her chest again? But really, it was the look on her face, and the wonder she was feeling, that I wanted to remember - and re-enacting it half an hour later wouldn't be the same.

So... I set myself a challenge. Scrapbook it without a photo - just the story. And while we are doing challenges, use a patterned paper (I'm a patterned paper junkie, but often struggle to get them, especially the 'busier' ones, to work on my layouts). Abandon that idea of A4/letter size, and get back to 12 x 12, and lets have some white space (green space?!) And most of all? Make it quick and simple!

The first thing I did was find a patterned paper (Raspberry Tart DSP), and then the card to match(Kiwi Kiss, and Pink Pirouette). The good thing about layouts without photos? Doesn't matter what colours you use! I had the idea of a big heart outline in my mind, and with the 'make it fast' challenge in mind, got to work cutting one out freehand. Type up the story, print and cut ('freehand' again).

Then figure out some embellishments to fancy it up a bit. I was pleased that the Kiwi Kiss corduroy buttons from the spring mini catalogue were just the right colour, as I love, love, love them! The ones with holes have a 'faux' thread (thin strip of patterned paper threaded through). The buttons without holes are actually like big brads at the back. The smaller hearts were also cut from the patterned paper.

I will admit that I was tempted to add some stamping to that big green background, but I resisted - quick and simple being the rule for the day. The title is annoying me a bit. The 'straight but freehand, so not really straight' cutting technique works fine for the journalling, but the title looks a little sloppy, darn it. I was going to pull it off, but the 2 way gluepen (which was GREAT for sticking on all those little bitty strips!) was just sticking too well.

And then I figured - it's done already, stick it in the album, and move on.

So I did. And it feels great!

Embossed wallets - and some lessons

2009-09-16T13:06:00.001-06:00

After showing you this wallet a couple of posts ago - I did manage to experiment with some embossing and I was really pleased with how it turned out. It has taken me a few days to get the post up though - the kids got hold of the wallets, and put them in a 'safe place' before I had managed to take the photo. Lesson 1 - take photos of your projects before the kids start playing.

Originally there was only going to be one embossed brown wallet to show you - that one you see there on the left. I love how this turned out. I cannot remember where I first saw this technique - the lady was using it on a wonderful handbag project she was making (if you have seen this, and remember, please let me know so I can give her the credit!)

Anyway, it is easy to do - just apply versamark ink to your project (yep - everywhere you want the embossing to be), add the clear embossing powder, and then before you heat it up to melt it, scrape some squiggly lines in it - removing a bit of the powder. This means that when you do heat it to melt the embossing powder, the squiggly lines will not be shiny, and you will get a bit of a leathery look.

Lesson 2 - make sure you clean out your powder pal properly between projects. It was only after I embossed the first brown wallet, and noticed it had a bad case of sparkly dandruff, that I discovered just how 'contaminated' my clear embossing powder was. Bother.

Lesson 3 - if the kids see it they will want one as well - not a new lesson that one of course, but I will confess, one I had momentarily forgotten. Luckily Campbell decided that he actually really liked the brown with sparkly dandruff wallet - but couldn't we please make the inside red? Bridie of course wanted pink with shiny flowers.

So, for that one we used one of the flowers from the Fifth Avenue Floral set, some gold ink, and some of that contaminated powder (no good for versamark on brown card, but actually still okay to use on white card, or with metallic/white ink). It doesn't show up all that well in the photo, but take my word for it - it looked stunning. Especially stuffed full of the paper money that we promptly had to make. I think I want one for me - expect, with real money instead of home made!

Lessons 4, 5, 6 and 7? Embossing is easy. Embossing is fun (the kids were fascinated!) You can heat emboss with a good old toaster, but to be honest, I think for a project like the brown wallets, where you are embossing a larger area, the heat tool is fantastic. If you are embossing both sides of a project remember that the first side you do may 'remelt' a bit when you do the second side - don't have it laying on your benchtop etc when you do that (and no - I didn't learn this last one the hard way!)

Guest artist gifts for the teacher

2009-09-10T08:52:00.001-06:00

Thank goodness for guest artists! Perfect for those times when you are completely out of sorts, and haven't been creating, let alone blogging about it! Please forgive me as I indulge in a guest artist post while I get my inspiration back...

Aren't these beautiful? My clever sister Anna-lise made these as a thank you for my niece's daycare teacher. I love how she has made her very own, one of a kind, patterned paper using the lovely 'Simply Said' stamp set. Being a two step stamping set this is just so versatile, and you know I am a big fan of DIY patterned paper! The lovely script thank you is from the now retired, but still much loved 'Warm Words' set.

I do believe that the 'box in a bag' (bag in a box?) gift bag had yummy homemade fudge in it. We love fudge too Anna-lise. Just in case you had nothing better to do today! And thank you, for being the guest artist, and helping me find my inspiration again (and what a bother I have to go and help at school in an hour!)

A Wallet for Dad

2009-08-31T09:42:00.001-06:00

"A father is someone who carries pictures in his wallet where his money used to be"

Author Unknown

Well ain't that the truth?! Not forgetting the receipts too, of course! So what could be more perfect for a card for Dad than a brand new wallet?

Many of you joined me to make this great project this time last year - just in time for Father's Day in New Zealand. From all accounts it was well received too - especially when the Dad's discovered it wasn't all receipts inside this time!

We used all chocalate chip card, inked and sponged to give it that worn in look, and completed it with some faux stitching - paper piercing using the mat pack, and then stitching drawn on using a choc chip marker. A square of acetate was also added to the 'photo pocket' - just like the real thing. Other pockets are perfect for notes, gift cards, vouchers, perhaps the winning lotto ticket?

This year I think I may try another wallet card, but this time I am thinking I will try a cool embossing technique I saw a while ago, to make it really look leathery. If it turns out okay I will be sure to share it. Otherwise we might just forget about that until perhaps next Father's Day, and be glad that this is the kind of card that can be easily recycled from year to year!

Stamp Club Ladies - check your emails - I just sent you the instructions to make this project - enjoy!

This week my Baby started School.

2009-08-28T21:45:00.002-06:00

Not a lot of blogging, or even creating this past week or so. I have been a little distracted. School is back, and now I have two school boys. My baby started school. My middle baby that is. His first day was Wednesday. You can be sure that I followed him with the camera for as long as I could, and then met the bus with camera in hand at the end of the day. So much scrapbooking potential - the photos and the words...

How do you describe this face?

This was after excitment had given way to nerves, and that sick feeling you get in your stomach.

It was also the beginnings of a minor panic attack...

"Mum, we forgot about my lunch!"

No baby, remember, we put your lunchbox in your bag

(visable relief)

"Oh yeah, I forgot"

He had been thinking that since we had forgotten to pack it, he would have to buy his lunch, but didn't remember his pin number, let alone how the whole buying your lunch thing worked or even how to find his way to the cafeteria in the first place.

All that on top of the usual first day of school stresses.

Poor Boy, no wonder his face looked like that!

The good news is this is how it looked at the end of the day...

Then there are the words. You can be sure we gave him the third degree from the moment he got home. Turns out school was:

fun - when he got to play in the toy kitchen - four kids at a time, and he pretended he was a broomer (that would be a person who uses a broom to clean stuff) and asked for a coffee and something to eat.
scary - when he was first outside and nobody was playing with him. Then a 'dude' came over and said 'Hey Dude, come and play' and they played spies and Campbell was the mission leader (and it was back to being fun again).
awesome - when he got to play Mr Men on the computer
sad - when he couldn't find Hayden after lunch. We had told him they wouldn't have lunch together (with 600 children at the school, lunchtime is a staggered affair) but had failed to point out that that would mean playing together after lunch would also not be an option. Turns out that was when the yucky tummy went away. After he stopped crying (oh no. Crying. Mum's heart breaks!), and started playing with the other 'dude' from his class.
funny - when the teacher (a man) was showing them the dressups and modeled a (girl's) hat
not to mention - filled with anticipation - he couldn't wait to go the next day, and was most looking forward to playing in the arts and crafts area, and playing with his new friend (that would be 'the dude')

Then there would be the list of after school snacks consumed. Including, but not limited to, a two egg, potato omelette (and yes, there are photos).

Yep. Definitely a LOT of scrapbooking potential. Now I just have to figure out this new routine of ours (bus stop at 7.15am!) and find some time to sit down and actually do it. The scrapbooking I mean. And count down the minutes until the bus comes home again.

Dude!

Sweet Sunday Masculine Card

2009-08-20T09:19:00.012-06:00

Today we have been busy spoiling ourselves just because we can. Because the kids haven't been fighting, because we got our jobs done, because we weren't the family standing on the side of the road in our pjs on Tuesday when the fire alarm went off (at 11am), and we all had to run from our apartments and wait for not one but two fire engines to arrive. We were in our outside clothes, waving to the firemen, and feeling very glad we weren't that family still in their pjs!!

Amongst other things we did to spoil ourselves, I spent some time working on a couple of cards to add to the pile. I wanted to try another sweet sunday challenge, and make a quick, stress free project, and if that could be a masculine project then so much better.

So here was the sketch I had to work with:

Here is the card I came up with. Blocks of patterned paper from the Urban Oasis collection, matted on chocolate chip, with a kraft card base. I love these papers - especially the fact that they work so well for both masculine and flowery projects.

A simple sentiment from the 'Sincere Salutations' stamp set, and a jumbo chocolate chip brad from the new spring mini to finish it off. Super simple, super quick, and best of all, super stress free!

Although, confession time. It wasn't actually the first card I came up with. Here is the first one...

This was also going to be a masculine card, but then I got sidetracked with that gorgeous floral paper, and suddenly it didn't work quite so well for the boys (but I am thinking if the flowers weren't on the top it still may have worked, with a different sentiment, perhaps?)

This time the papers were from the Urban Garden collection, and I sponged the edges of the paper pieces with Not quite Navy ink rather than mat them. Instead of a brad, I added a little bit of paper piercing as a finishing touch. Another stress free project completed - the best kind!

DIY alphabet background

2009-08-15T17:12:00.018-06:00

I debated if I should share this layout or not. If I do, I get to show that I have started and finished a layout, but then I will also reveal how long it took. Although, the actual start to finish did only take a couple of hours. It was the time that had elapsed since Hayden had: 1 - requested the photo, and 2 - requested the layout (essentially the same breath) that was not so impressive.

There is no denying how long that was. The layout gives it all away. You see Hayden is a 'millennium baby' - born in the year 2000 (with a fancy 'millennium birth certificate to prove it!) Whatever year it happens to be now? That will be how old he is.

Cue the layout...

Seven. Seven. Seven.

Yep. He was aged seven, the date was 07.07.07, and the time we took the photo? Why 07:07 of course!

For two years now I have had an idea of what I wanted to do, but just hadn't quite gotten around to doing it. Until now. Time for some more 'DIY patterned paper' for the ultimate one off layout. I love how you can make your backgrounds look exactly the way you want by making them yourself. Remember this one?

I pulled out my alphabet stamps, and started stamping (and you know, when you look at a word for a while, and it suddenly doesn't look right? About half way through I was convinced that seven perhaps wasn't spelt s.e.v.e.n after all - argh!)

I decided to use versamark ink, and then clear emboss the letters, so that they would have a nice shine, and be a little more interesting. It didn't take that long - although I was sure to leave blank the spot that I knew would be covered over by the photo...

I knew I wanted to have the little bit of journaling (age, date, time) in strip form, but when it came time to see how it looked it kind of got lost a little in all those lovely shiny sevens...

I didn't want to cover all those lovely shiny sevens over, so what to do?

Vellum to the rescue. By placing vellum under the photo and journaling, it helped to anchor them all a bit, but didn't cover the background completely. Best of both worlds! Some brads to finish off, and the layout was finally in the album. I think I might be breaking out the vellum a little more often now!

Cheep Talk Sweet Sunday Challenge

2009-08-13T18:47:00.004-06:00

It feels like it has been a while since I sat down and did some craft stuff, let alone blog about it! This morning was spent helping the boys with their holiday scrapbook projects (and then helping Bridie make her own mini version). This afternoon it was time to do some stuff for me, but I was lacking inspiration. Time for the latest Sweet Sunday sketch challenge from Karen Giron - the perfect kick in the pants!

This was the sketch for this week...

This is what I came up with. It was the first time I had used the 'Cheep Talk' stamp set, and all the inking was done using stampin' markers. Colours used were mellow moss, close to cocoa, so saffron and really rust (with card to match) and I am really pleased with how they look together.

It did take me a little while to settle on a sentiment, and several different stamp sets were trialed, but the final winner was this 'thank you' from the 'Family Phrases' set. It was also a good chance for me to break out one of the lovely new brads from the Spring Mini Catalogue - a 5/8" jumbo choc chip brad, to help balance the card out a bit (it was feeling a little lopsided!).

I must confess that I am finding sketch challenges a little bit, well, challenging! A lot more so than the colour challenges. I find myself tempted to add or subtract elements, or rearrange them all. Not that I don't like the original sketch, just that, I get a little sidetracked! The first version of this card ended up like this...

I really liked the simplicity of it. It was done. Then I realised, it doesn't really match the sketch! Oops, cue version two (but I'm keeping version one too, and best of all, I now have a good start on a set of coordinating cards). Does anyone else have that trouble?

big and bold meets simple and elegant

2009-08-07T20:45:00.006-06:00

Well I did manage to do a bit of creating today, but haven't managed to take a photo yet. Since I am determined to get a post done today, I instead went hunting through the photos I did have, and found this card. It may look familiar to some of you - this was one of the cards we made last year for my 'World Card Making Day' event. What a fun day that was!

So anyway, on with the card...

(Oh my, it is not the best photo, but if you do what I obviously did when I took the photo, and lean your head to one side, it does kind of look straight! I might try again in the morning and see if I can do better) * as it turns out the new photo wasn't really any better, so you might need to use your imagination a bit - sorry!

This was actually a very quick and easy card. The background stamping was done with the jumbo 'happy, happy birthday' wheel, inked up using the soft sky inkpad (rather than a cartridge) and stamped on soft sky card, for a nice subtle look.

The main image (which is easier to see in the close up below) was made using the 'Big Bold Birthday' stamp set, and was stamped using soft sky (for the box) and silver (for the bow) and matted onto a square of silver card.

And that was it! I really liked how simple and elegant the finished card looked (and did I mention it was quick?!)

Working on some 'train' stuff at the moment, to share soon, and I really should get some photos developed - I think I am overdue for some scrapbooking (might have to hunt through my photos again, for old projects not yet shared!!)

Parisian Breeze Stationery Set

2009-08-02T20:50:00.006-06:00

I think I mentioned that last week I was off to a class? - my first one in ages! Well - here it is - a glimpse of the gorgeous stationery set we made - just like a little suitcase, with matching cards and envelopes inside...

We used the oh so beautiful Parisian Breeze Specialty Papers (now available in the NZ/Aust Spring Mini Catalogue). If you haven't used the specialty papers before they are definitely worth a look. Not only are the designs great, but the heavier weight (they feel like cardstock) make them perfect for projects like this, where you need a bit of substance. The fact that they are double sided means it is easy to flip them over and make your own perfectly coordinated trims - like on the outside pockets (you could use those pockets for stamps etc, but a notebook on one side, and chocolate on the other worked for me!)

Some jumbo brads and ribbon for the handles, and a rhinestone brad to finish off the closure made for a truly elegant project. There was more than one small disagreement when I got home, over just who that little suitcase might be for (so far, Mummy is winning!)

Here is a glimpse of the inside - with room for cards and envelopes, or whatever else you want...

Too much fun.

Like this week. When we go off exploring again.

See you at the end of the week!

The Spring Mini Catalogue is here...

2009-08-01T14:45:00.005-06:00

Okay, so it has only been a few months since we got the new catalogue, but that doesn't mean we haven't been waiting to find out what was in the new mini catalogue right? So if you haven't got your paper copy yet, click on the image below and you can check it out online.

There are of course lots of lovely stamp sets - including some new christmas sets, a great little train set that I know I will get a lot of use from, and some individual stamps including a 'one of a kind' stamp that would be perfect for stamping the back of your projects - especially if you plan to sell them or give them away. Best of all, almost all of the stamp sets are priced around the $30 - $45 mark, so not too much of a budget stretch!

Add to that some new rubons, gorgeous papers, and of course embellishments - including corduroy buttons, flower and jumbo brads, and a candy striped wide ribbon. Did I mention the scalloped oval punch, or white stazon ink yet?

I don't know about you, but my wish list just got longer!

Not a lot of crafty stuff happening around here at the moment. We are still making the most of our last few weeks of holiday, and of course, having visitors. I am hoping to get some projects up here for you very soon though, so watch this space!

Random bits and pieces...

2009-07-25T17:08:00.016-06:00

Today I got to do something I haven't done in a while. I went to a papercraft class. Five blissful hours out of the house doing crafty stuff. It was the first time I had done a class for months - and best of all, because I wasn't the teacher, I didn't have to do the prep! I got to make a really cute little stationery set, using some lovely papers. I need to take some photos and then I will share some more of that!

Add to that I have a lovely new book to read...

Clean and Simple Scrapbooking - The Sequel, by Cathy Zielske

I am trying to make it 'last' as long as possible, and so far have just looked at the pictures. I do know that when looking at a book about scrapbooking, the pictures are pretty much where it is at, but still, I am just looking, not actually studying them yet. Much. Except a couple of pages where I couldn't resist a read. Glad I did too, as Cathy made an excellent point that I thought I would share. I'm not sure about you, but I take a LOT of photos. I don't scrapbook at the same rate. The to do pile grows much faster than the done pile (those are all my points!)

Cathy suggested a photo album. Not a scrapbook album. Not a 'temporary storage until I scrapbook them' photo album, but instead an actual, old style photo album, with maybe a note or two about what is going on, and then leave it at that. Because it is nice to get the photos out of the box (or off the computer) and where people can see them, and because not everything needs to be scrapbooked.

Good Point Cathy. I think I am going to buy a nice photo album (or two). Amazing how that the pressure lifts when you remember that you don't have to scrapbook it all! Cathy Zielske - putting the fun back in scrapbooking! Go check out her blog if you don't already.

In other news, the launch of the Spring Mini Catalogue is fast approaching, and there are a few things in there that I am especially excited about, but that's all I'm going to say for the moment! I will be sending out copies to my stamp club members. If anyone else would like one please contact me and I will add you to the mailing list. I will also add a link on my sidebar to the online version, just as soon as it becomes available (1 August).

In other, other news, I was so happy this week to discover that this card had been chosen as one of the lucky top 20 in Kristina's colour challenge round up! Wow - that was a buzz. Thanks to all those lovely people who visited to check out the card, and especially those who left lovely comments. There are a lot of incredibly talented people who participate in these challenges so I sure do feel special this week! I've said it before and I will say it again - challenges are fun, and, well, challenging. If you haven't already you should try it!

Finally, I suspect that my posts may be few and far between the next couple of weeks as we are having guests and will be out exploring again. I had planned to be super organised and do lots of projects this week, so I would have a wee stockpile of blog stuff all set and ready to go, but I got a new book instead. You can probably figure out the rest!

A sweet vanilla sundae - or something like that!

2009-07-22T21:41:00.008-06:00

OK - so actually it is a Sweet 'Sunday' challenge, and the flavour is vanilla and saffron - but man - this card has been making me think about French Vanilla ice cream all afternoon, and that was before I made the Sunday /Sundae connection (I have a headache - my brain is in slow mo!)

Before I head to bed to sleep it off, I had better forget the ice cream and get on to the card. First up the inspiration...

A great little sketch challenge that I have been meaning to give a try for a little while now. Bridie had an unplanned afternoon sleep today, and instead of joining her which would have been the sensible thing to do, I decided to do some creating - the other sensible thing. So here it is:

A saffron and vanilla creation - I think it is such a yummy colour combo. I also really like the way my fake lace doily (that would be an eyelet border punched and then crimped vanilla card strip) worked out.

Stamps from the nursery Necessities set, and background paper from the 'Tea Party' pack.

This was actually the second card I made. The first one ended up being a little too upside down and back to front compared to the original sketch. How many changes can you make before it nolonger qualifies for the challenge I wonder? I think I crossed the line with the first one, so I will have to share it another day!

from a quick card to a quick layout...

2009-07-18T11:14:00.011-06:00

After making this quick card for the latest Kristina Werner Colour Challenge I got to thinking that it might also work well as a scrapbook project. I ummed and ahhed a bit over what size to make it - 12 x 12 or an A4 / 8.5 x 11 hybrid? The hybrid size won out because I had been wanting to do another of these for a while.

It was pretty much the same as the card, except this time I used rub on letters for the title, rather than stamps. I decided it didn't need any journaling, the title says it all, but then got to thinking - one day down the track would we want to know how old those crazy kids were when they did those silly things? What's so crazy about eating a carrot or wearing goggles anyway? I was going to make notes on the back of the layout - just in case, but decided instead to go with some 'hidden journaling' on a tag behind the photos. This meant attaching the photos to another piece of card, rather than straight onto the base card, to make a space for the tag.

I am really loving this colour combo (ballet blue, certainly celery, pumpkin pie, so saffron, riding hood red, and white). It has a really happy feel about it. The coloured hearts and white writing really pop off the ballet blue background. I think this might be my new favourite blue!

Oh, just in case you were thinking I had six children and where do I find the time for scrapbooking?! I actually have three children (two photos of each) and where the heck can I find some time to scrapbook?!

A quick colour challenge card

2009-07-16T16:07:00.005-06:00

Time for another colour challenge from Kristina Werner. Pretty colours this week, although at first glance, all those colours were a little intimidating!

Time was short today, so just a quick card using the 'heart to heart' punch. It's like three punches in one, so a good time saver. Punch out a collection of hearts, add a dash of white pen around the outside of the card, and a greeting from the 'short and sweet' set and this is what you get...

Might have to have another try later on. I have an idea, and if you see a post about it, it worked out!